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 | Eric Toner, MD |
In the News
2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007
2011
A decade after the 'Amerithrax' attacks, is the nation better prepared? St. Louis Beacon. (10-10-2011): Dr. Toner is quoted in this article.
U.S. biodefenses improve, but new threats develop. Global Security Newswire. (09-30-2011): Dr. Eric Toner comments about the state of U.S. public health preparedness.
Strides in biodefense follow 2001 anthrax scare. USA Today. (09-29-2011): Dr. Eric Toner weighs in on the state of U.S. public health preparedness.
U.S. health care system unprepared for major nuclear emergency, by Sheri Fink. ProPublica. (04-07-2011): Dr. Eric Toner comments about protecting citizens in the wake of an emergency: "Nature abhors a vacuum. If credible officials aren't out there constantly, that void will get filled with people who don't know what they're talking about or have different agendas."
Decontamination after radiation exposure: simpler than you may think, by Richard Knox. National Public Radio. (03-17-2011): Dr. Toner talks about decontamination after exposure to radiation, "As a rule of thumb, 80 percent of decontamination is removing your clothes. . . And 95 percent is removing your clothes and taking a shower — if possible, shampooing your hair. That's all that's involved. No fancy chemicals."
2010
PA. scores well on emergency readiness: experts question criteria used to achieve rankings, by Vivian Nereim. Pittsburgh Post Gazette. (12-15-2010): Dr. Toner comments on the cuts in federal funding to public health as outlined in the Trust for America’s Health report titled “Ready or Not? Protecting the Public's Health from Diseases, Disasters and Bioterrorism”: “I think it's a terrible shame, but it is a reflection of the very tough economy that we're in right now.”
Pregnant women to get anthrax jab. Emerging Health Threats Forum. (08-04-2010): Dr. Toner comments about CDC's updated guidelines that call for vaccinating pregnant women against anthrax following an aerosolized attack: “The vaccine would only be used after an B. anthracis release and then the risk/benefit equation is very clear . . . Whatever tiny risk to the mother or fetus there might be from the vaccine would be greatly outweighed by the risk of dying from inhalational anthrax."
Plan expert: CDC made 'serious mistake' on N95s. Hospital Infection Control. (04-01-2010): Dr. Toner discusses the practicality of CDC's recommendation that healthcare workers wear N95 masks during the H1N1 pandemic: "There were not enough — and still are not enough — N95 respirators to be used in the way that the guidance recommended . . . There was no opportunity for hospitals to buy enough N95s to follow the guidance. So even if they wanted to [follow the guideline] there was no way to do it. The CDC made a judgment that N95s were the highest degree of protection. I wouldn't necessarily argue with that, but what good is making a guideline that can't be followed?"
Other duties suffered but IPs rose to occasion. Hospital Infection Control. (04-01-2010): Dr. Toner discusses how the H1N1 pandemic affected hospitals' infection control activities: "Typically, infection control departments in hospitals can be one person or sometimes two . . . If they are doing a lot of work with a pandemic they don't have time to do other things."
HHS unveils strategy for disaster response. Emergency Department Management. (04-01-2010): Dr. Toner remarks about the National Health Security Strategy and the need for greater coordination of disaster planning: "In my hospital I worked on my response plans, but I did not know what others were doing, what the state or the federal government was doing," Toner says. "We need more local collaboration — collaboration that's really transparent — with other hospitals, and then close planning and exercise work with our state, neighboring states, and the federal government."
H1N1 pandemic legacy may be mandatory flu shots for health care workers. Hospital Infection Control. (04-01-2010): Dr. Toner talks about the safety of the H1N1 vaccine: "They put in a monitoring process that didn't exist before, but in terms of testing the vaccine they used the same procedures and methodologies they use each year."
Health agency plans summit on U.S. biological threat preparations, by Martin Matishak. Global Security Newswire. (02-05-2010): Dr. Toner discusses the development of countermeasures against bioterrorism threats, "What we've not been able to do is get those countermeasures through what's called the advanced development phase to a drug that can then be licensed. We're batting zero in that regard."
2009
Medical advice is the last thing we want to be unsure about. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. (11-29-2009): Dr. Toner weighs in on whether people should receive 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine, "I think the message should be that this virus is not going away. Unless you know with certainty you already had the H1N1 strain of illness, you should get the vaccine."
Flu causes aches and pains at White House; vaccine shortages are bad news for the administration. Will swine flu be Obama's Katrina? by Will Englund. National Journal. (11-07-2009): Dr. Toner assesses the Obama administration’s actions regarding the H1N1 vaccine program, "Here, the government has done everything it can do."
U.S. hospitals weathering flu pandemic so far, by Julie Steenhuysen. Thompson Reuters. (11-05-2009): Dr. Toner pointed out the increased volume of H1N1 patients on hospitals, "So far, it has not been overwhelming. Just a stretch."
H1N1 flu 'pushing hospitals to their limit,' by Steve Sternberg. USA Today. (10-26-2009): Dr. Toner weighs in on the impact that 2009 H1N1 influenza.
Swine flu threatens hospital business. Marketplace Report. National Public Radio. (10-21-2009): Dr. Toner discusses the financial impact of 2009 H1N1 influenza on hospitals, "Hospitals stay profitable to the extent that they are profitable by high-profit services, such as elective surgeries. So if hospitals have to defer elective surgeries, that will definitely impact them adversely."
Disaster plans being revised for swine flu: strains on emergency system feared, by Rob Stein. Washington Post. (09-13-2009): Dr. Toner is interviewed about the potential effects of H1N1 on hospitals, "There will be millions and millions of people seeking care in a relatively short period of time. . . Only a small percentage of those people will require hospitalization and a small percentage will require intensive care. But it's still an awful lot of people."
Officials brace for an H1N1 resurgence, Daily Kos. (08-23-2009): Dr. Toner and the Center for Biosecurity are referenced in this article.
Preparing for swine flu's return; new wave expected after virus flourished in southern hemisphere, by Rob Stein. The Washington Post. (08-10-2009): Dr. Toner weighs in on the second wave of the 2009 flu virus, anticipated for the fall: "There's only so much that can be done to get ready...All you can do is try to be prepared to deal with the consequences."
E.R.’s may be the first victims, by Eric Toner. New York Times. (08-02-2009): Dr. Toner's OpEd article offers his views on the state of hospital preparedness and recommendations for dealing with influenza in the fall: "Most important, hospitals should cooperate with one another, and with public health agencies, to distribute patient loads, stockpile supplies and share limited resources."
Health care workers infected with H1N1: One health care worker reported transmission despite mask. Case Management Advisor. (08-01-2009): Dr. Toner remarked about healthcare worker safety issues during the spring 2009 H1N1 outbreak: "We heard of some hospitals that had a run on their N95 [respirators]. Clinical units were hoarding them to make sure they had enough."
Flu furore hits Argentina: refusal to declare national emergency restricts pandemic measures, by Anna Petherick. Nature News. (07-14-2009): Dr. Toner is mentioned in this article.
Interview with Eric Toner, by Jim Unland. Journal of Health Business and Policy. (06-19-2009): Eric Toner, MD: Journal of Health Business and Policy, June 19, 2009.
System built for bioterror used to monitor flu. Associated Press. (06-12-2009): Dr. Toner commented about syndromic surveillance during the spring 2009 H1N1 outbreak in New York: "In the first few weeks, when we weren't sure what this was, it was reassuring to see that there weren't large numbers of patients going to emergency rooms."
Avian influenza aided readiness for swine flu, by Erika Check Hayden. Nature News. (06-10-2009): Dr. Toner commented on the global planning for avian flu and how it has had an impact on the readiness for H1N1: "Many nations built their plans around the idea that a pandemic strain would evolve in southeast Asia, that we would recognize it early, and that we would be able to contain it. None of that turned out to be true."
Swine flu Q&A with UPMC biosecurity expert. Hospital Peer Review. (06-01-2009): Dr. Toner discusses issues associated with the spring 2009 H1N1 outbreak.
H1N1 pandemic: IPs weather first wave, but warn against complacency as virus regroups. Hospital Infection Control. (06-01-2009): Dr. Toner comments about spring 2009 H1N1 total case numbers: “We know that people from this country traveled to all different parts of Mexico and became infected. They did not have known contact with people that were sick, which says to me there must have been a considerable amount of community spread throughout Mexico. The denominator of the case fatality ratio must be very large. There are lots and lots of people that did not have serious infections."
CDC, Hospital IPs on different pandemic page: Hospitals treat H1N1 like seasonal flu. Hospital Infection Control. (06-01-2009): Dr. Toner is interviewed extensively about H1N1 and issues that pertain specifically to the hospital setting.
Lawmaker threatens to force DHS to let employees wear masks, by Alex M. Parker. Government Executive Magazine. (05-14-2009): In an article that discusses disease containment measures for DHS workers, Dr. Toner comments about the longevity of the H1N1 outbreak, "We're in the first two weeks of a yearlong outbreak."
Audio interview with Dr. Eric Toner, by Jim Unland. Journal of Healthcare Economics. (05-06-2009): Dr. Toner is interviewed about the H1N1 outbreak, its implications, and some lessons learned to date.
WTOP News Radio, Washington, DC. (05-01-2009): Dr. Toner was interviewed about the production of a vaccine for 2009 H1N1 influenza.
Bush team strategy now Obama's swine flu playbook, by Scott Wilson and Spencer S. Hsu. Washington Post. (05-01-2009): Dr. Toner remarked on the decision to close public schools because of the 2009 H1N1 outbreak, "Who's going to take care of all the sick people if all the nurses and health-care workers are home taking care of their kids? And the evidence that school closures are effective is pretty thin."
Swine flu gives Napolitano second chance. The Hill. (04-29-2009): Dr. Toner comments about DHS Secretary Janet Napalitano's response to the 2009 H1N1 outbreak: “She's been handed a remarkable mess,” . . . “I was really impressed that they [federal officials] are handling the nuances of this very well. They are explaining them in very straightforward, clear language that most people can understand.”
Obama acts to ease flu fears; U.S. says it is prepared, by Robert Pear and Gardiner Harris. New York Times. (04-28-2009): Dr. Toner discusses the federal response to the swine flu outbreak: “It can be very dangerous to overreact. And it can be very dangerous to underreact.” . . . “[Obama administration officials] have managed to get it just right.”
Swine flu outbreak highlights HHS vacancies, by Julie Rovner. Morning Edition. National Public Radio. (04-28-2009): Dr. Toner discussed federal interagency coordination and communication on the 2009 H1N1 outbreak: "They explained very complicated issues in a very understandable way; they were calm; they were reassuring, but not overly so; they stressed the serious nature of the outbreak, but without scaring people. They were pitch-perfect; they got it just right."
WebMD, MedScape Today. (04-27-2009): Article references the Center for Biosecurity’s report, Hospitals Rising to the Challenge, and quotes Dr. Toner, "The U.S. healthcare system is not currently capable of effectively responding to a sudden surge in demand for medical care that would occur during catastrophic events, such as those described in the Department of Homeland Security...National Planning Scenarios."
Homeland Security: Inside and Out, hosted by Dave McIntyre and Randy Larsen. Federal News Radio. (03-17-2009): Dr. Toner discusses the status of U.S. hospital preparedness and the limitations associated with responding to mass casualty events: “An individual hospital maybe could handle 5 or 6 casualties with serious injuries from an event. Anything much larger than that will require the distribution of patients to multiple facilities and the collaboration between those facilities.” Listen to interview
2008
Powder scare unnerves East Liberty, by Jill King Greenwood and Tim Puko. Pittsburgh Tribune Review. (07-26-2008): With regard to a white powder incident in Pittsburgh, Dr. Toner comments, “It’s an effective way for people who want to cause havoc to get some attention or create a disturbance…Putting some talcum powder in a bag and dropping it somewhere gets a lot of attention and is very disruptive. And there’s nothing we can do about that.”
Mega disasters: Airborne attack. The History Channel. (07-01-2008): Dr. Toner is interviewed for this hour-long feature.
U.S. President's 2009 biodefense budget proposal calls for overall growth, but some cuts. States News Service. (06-19-2008): Dr. Toner cautions,"Unless we address the critical issue of hospital overcrowding, our ability to respond to any sort of biological attack is going to be severely limited."
Vaccine mishap, flu outbreak overwhelms EDs, highlight lack of surge capacity, by Maryn McKenna. Annals of Emergency Medicine. (June 2008): Dr. Toner comments about the demands that this year's flu season placed on hospitals: "This is a teaching moment for hospital administrations. Emergency departments being overwhelmed is not a problem that can't be fixed."
Is Milwaukee prepared for a bio-terrorism attack? Reported by Kent Wainscott. WISN, ABC TV Affiliate in Milwaukee, WI. (05-21-2008): Dr. Toner comments on the security afforded by BioWatch detectors, "At this point I would say that people who are in cities with BioWatch monitors are no safer than people who are in cities without BioWatch monitors." Watch interview on WISN website
Five years later, smallpox preparedness improved, by Jeffrey Young. The Hill. (03-06-2008): With regard to the federal program to vaccine healthcare workers against smallpox, Dr. Toner notes that the program "was ill-conceived from the beginning."
KDWN Morning News. Host: Nathan Tannenbaum. KDWN News Radio Las Vegas. (02-29-2008): Dr. Toner was interviewed about ricin, following the discovery of the toxin in a Las Vegas hotel room: "Ricin has no use other than as a poison . . . there is no market for ricin itself; you make it from castor beans, and that's not difficult to do."
Homeland Security Inside and Out. Host: Randy Larsen. KAMU 90.9 FM. (01-29-2008): Radio interview with Dr. Toner about a recent incident involving a woman with tuberculosis who flew from India to Chicago and on to San Francisco, and the CDC's response in tracking other airline passengers: "TB is spread through the air, but requires prolonged contact. And so they're (CDC) tracking down people who flew with her from India to Chicago, and not those people who flew from Chicago to San Francisco, because the risk of catching the disease is really quite small with a short exposure." Listen to interview
HHS draft: Hospitals must purchase antivirals for pandemic influenza. Hospital Employee Health. (01-01-2008): With regard to the new ruling that hospitals purchase antivirals for their employees, Dr. Toner notes "It's likely you're not going to get people to work in those units if you don't provide them with prophylaxis." He also notes that "hospitals that have little money to spend are going to take a lot of convincing to spend it on this."
'Highest Risk' HCWS to get first pandemic vaccine. Hospital Employee Health. (01-01-2008): Report refers to an article published in the journal Biosecurity and Bioterrorism entitled “What Hospitals Should Do to Prepare for an Influenza Pandemic,” by Drs. Toner and Waldhorn of the Center for Biosecurity, and quotes Dr. Toner: "There are so many variables that can't be known until a pandemic starts. . . The best you can do is come up with an initial game plan that has to be modified."
2007
Flu pandemic would cost hospitals billions, by Michael Smith. MedPage Today. (12-04-2007): With regard to a study published in the Journal of Health Care Finance, author Dr. Toner notes “. . .the expected negative financial impact on hospitals of a severe pandemic is significant.”
Homeland Security Inside and Out. Host: Randy Larsen. KAMU 90.9 FM. (11-20-2007): Radio interview with Dr. Toner regarding Homeland Security Presidential Directive 21: “I think this is a remarkable document. . .It touches on what we consider the critical components for the healthcare sector, biosurveillance, countermeasure distribution, and community engagement, so it’s a great document.” Listen to interview
Homeland Security Inside and Out. Host: Randy Larsen. KAMU 90.9 FM. (06-26-2007): Radio interview with Dr. Toner regarding Extensively Drug Resistant Tuberculosis. Dr. Toner comments: ". . . we need rapid diagnostic tests for this organism and for other potentially serious emerging diseases; it shouldn't take us 5 months to make a diagnosis of this condition—we should be able to do it in hours or at least days." Listen to interview
Homeland Security Inside and Out. Host: Randy Larsen. KAMU 90.9 FM. (05-29-2007): Radio interview with Dr. Toner regarding CDC's flu protection guidelines. Dr. Toner notes "If it were a particularly bad strain of pandemic flu, yes, I would wear an N95 [respirator] at close contact [with a person infected with flu], and I would wear a mask out in public in a crowded situation." Listen to interview
Review finds little evidence of airborne spread of flu, by Maryn McKenna. CIDRAP News. (03-13-2007): Dr. Toner is quoted: "A lot of our assumptions turn out to be based on urban legends, or extrapolations made from incomplete information . . ."
Bird-flu vaccine goes before feds, by George E. Jordan. Star-Ledger (New Jersey). (02-27-2007): Regarding an experimental flu vaccine, Dr. Toner notes "This particular vaccine is not an answer to our prayers."
Homeland Security Inside and Out. Host: Randy Larsen. KAMU 90.9 FM. (02-13-2007): Radio interview with Dr. Toner regarding the state of hospital preparedness for large-scale emergencies in the U.S.: "We are concerned about a number of serious disaster scenarios—earthquakes and large-scale terrorism—and we don’t yet have a healthcare system that is at all prepared to handle that. It is a serious issue that needs attention from both the federal government and state government, individual hospitals, and individual communities. Without all these elements working together, we’re not going to get there." Listen to interview
Hospitals unprepared for pandemic surge, by Dan Childs. ABC News. (02-05-2007): Dr. Toner comments: "In a moderate scenario, an additional 19 percent of non-ICU beds, 46 percent of ICU beds and 20 percent of ventilators would be in use by flu patients . . . If we have something like the 1918 pandemic, we're in big trouble." Read interview
Complacency could be deadly in pandemic. Hospital Employee Health. (02-01-2007): Dr. Toner is quoted: "I doubt we could handle a 1968 pandemic now. Our hospitals have trouble dealing with a bad flu season as it is."