The COVID Response Corps is a new, nationwide community-focused initiative to provide surge staffing and resources to support state, tribal, local, and territorial health departments on the frontlines of the fight against COVID-19. The Corps builds on and expands CDC’s current deployments to communities in need and is part of a multi-pronged approach to help enhance and complement the efforts of state, tribal, local, and territorial staff. This initiative will help health departments with the staffing resources they need for their programs to get and keep America open.
The COVID Response Corps will include CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service officers, Public Health Associate Program associates, and agency experts from other human resource pools. Corps members will augment health department teams and will engage in core public health functions, including
- Conducting contact tracing
- Providing infection prevention and control guidance
- Staffing call centers
- Providing COVID-19 education
Corps members will also help implement and evaluate new technologies, including rapid diagnostic tests and other novel testing platforms, and innovative mobile applications for contact tracing.
For each state, CDC will designate a leader who will work closely with health departments to identify and fill surge staffing needs. In addition to strengthening health systems through this new initiative, CDC will continue to enhance support to state, tribal, local, and territorial jurisdictions through:
- Ongoing technical assistance
- Virtual training on contact tracing, case investigations, and infection prevention and control
- Outbreak investigations in congregate settings — for example, long-term care facilities
- Best practices for prevention and control based on most recent knowledge of COVID-19 epidemiology
- Digital platforms to support large-scale contact tracing
- Health communication support by deploying staff and developing and disseminating messages
- Guidance documents for different settings
- Data analytics tools and reports
- Call centers to answer clinicians’ inquiries 24/7
- 1-800-CDC-INFO toll-free information for the public