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Biosecurity Briefing
USDA OIG Makes Recommendations for Agency Pandemic Planning By Michelle Cantu, February 15, 2008 Recently the Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) completed an audit of the agency’s implementation of the National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza. Of 98 tasks assigned to the USDA by the Homeland Security Council (HSC) in the 2005 National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza, the OIG reviewed 55 that were to be completed by February 2007 to assess “whether USDA had adequately implemented the actions…required by the Plan.” The audit found that although USDA “has made significant progress in developing or revising policies and procedures to detect, contain, and eradicate highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI),” problems remain with the agency’s ability to manage and report outbreaks. According to the audit, areas where USDA has made progress in responding to the National Strategy include:
Despite these developments, the OIG report faults the USDA for failing to “institute adequate management controls to ensure readiness in the event of an outbreak.”1 Moreover, the OIG identified two instances in which the agency provided incorrect information regarding its progress in implementing the National Strategy to the Homeland Security Council:
The report claims that these errors “occurred because USDA did not implement adequate management controls, such as second-party reviews of lead tasks.” The OIG notes that, due to such a lack in oversight, “there is a reduced assurance that USDA can respond at the time of an outbreak…”1 The OIG also found that the USDA has failed to test and evaluate the effectiveness of new and revised policies and procedures. The report highlights the inability of APHIS to inform stakeholders of a confirmed outbreak within 24 hours on its website. According to the report, “early warning of an outbreak in other countries is critical to APHIS to allow it time to implement screening protocols in the United States.”1 As noted in a report by CIDRAP News, the OIG warned the USDA that a delay in reporting could “let infected birds into the United States to contaminate domestic flocks and the food supply.”2 In a written response to the OIG report, USDA Administrator Cindy J. Smith agreed with the recommendations and addressed each. She responded that “planning and preparedness is an ongoing continual improvement process” and that the USDA had a “commitment to continual improvement.”1 References
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