August 20, 2021 – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) earlier this week announced it would create the Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics, a new center designed to advance the use of forecasting and outbreak analytics in public health decision making.
The CDC says that the Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics will bring together next-generation public health data, expert disease modelers, public health emergency responders, and high-quality communications in order to “accelerate access to and use of data for public health decision-makers who need information to mitigate the effects of disease threats, such as social and economic disruption.”
Initially, the center will initially focus on three key functions:
- Predict: Undertake modeling and forecasting; enhance the ability to determine the foundational data sources needed; support research and innovation in outbreak analytics and science for real-time action; and establish appropriate forecasting horizons.
- Connect: Expand broad capability for data sharing and integration; maximize interoperability with data standards and utilize open-source software and application programming interface capabilities, with existing and new data streams from the public health ecosystem and beyond.
- Inform: Translate and communicate forecasts; connect with key decision-makers across sectors including government, businesses, and non-profits, along with individuals with strong intergovernmental affairs and communication capacity for action.
The leadership for the new center was also announced. Dr. Marc Lipsitch will serve as Director for Science, Dr. Dylan George will serve as Director for Operations; Dr. Caitlin Rivers will serve as Associate Director, and Dr. Rebecca Kahn will serve as Senior Scientist.
“The new center will meet a longstanding need for a national focal point to analyze data and forecast the trajectory of pandemics with the express goal of informing and improving decisions with the best available evidence,” said Dr. Lipsitch. “I am thrilled to be working with a great team at CDC to set it up, and excited to integrate the best and most innovative ideas from academia, the private sector, and government to make this a reality that will truly improve our response to future pandemics, and indeed to other infectious diseases.”