Centralized infectious disease surveillance strategy urged

 The Government Accountability Office released a report July 30 outlining actions experts suggested to improve U.S. surveillance for emerging infectious diseases, following a roundtable GAO convened with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Six things to know:

1. GAO convened 18 experts in public health, animal health, infectious disease and academia over three sessions in April and May 2025 to develop the recommendations, citing COVID-19, H5N1 avian influenza and measles as examples of the threats driving the need for stronger surveillance.

2. The experts’ suggestions fell into four categories: collaboration, data quality and infrastructure, surveillance methods, and communication. Among their suggestions, experts called for a multisectoral, multidisciplinary leadership group to coordinate surveillance across agencies responsible for human, animal and environmental health. They said the lack of centralized authority to direct cross-agency surveillance has led to inconsistent collaboration. Experts also urged a comprehensive national surveillance strategy to cut down on duplicated data collection.

3. On data quality, experts pointed to a lack of standardized systems, no common data language across platforms and outdated technology as barriers to complete surveillance data. They recommended common data standards, expanded use of federated systems that let agencies share data while storing it locally, and a review of the CDC’s Data Modernization Initiative to help jurisdictions adopt modern technology.

4. To refine surveillance methods, experts recommended targeting high-risk animal and human populations, expanding and standardizing wastewater surveillance, diversifying data collection and testing techniques, and evaluating the cost-effectiveness of existing systems, including greater use of artificial intelligence and machine learning.

5. Experts said public trust is central to data completeness: If people are unwilling to get tested or report infections, agencies collect incomplete data. They recommended a coordinated communication strategy that draws on communication professionals, behavior-change principles and trusted community leaders.

6. GAO said the suggested actions give HHS and other agencies a chance to weigh tradeoffs and feasibility as they consider new approaches to infectious disease surveillance.

View the full report here.

https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/quality/public-health/experts-call-for-centralized-infectious-disease-surveillance-strategy-6-notes/