Abbreviation CHS CEO and Director Tom Inglesby | Type Think tank COO and Deputy Director Anita Cicero | |
Formation 1998; 19 years ago (1998) Location Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America | ||
The Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security (abbreviated CHS; previously the UPMC Center for Health Security, the Center for Biosecurity of UPMC, and the Johns Hopkins Center for Civilian Biodefense Strategies) is an independent, nonprofit organization of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health that works in the area of health consequences from epidemics and disasters. It is a think tank that does policy research and gives policy recommendations to the United States government.
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History
The Center for Health Security began as the Johns Hopkins Center for Civilian Biodefense Strategies (CCBS) in 1998 at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. D. A. Henderson served as the founding director. At that time, the Center was the first and only academic center focused on biosecurity policy and practice.
At one point around 2003, CHS had become part of a new umbrella organization called the Institute for Global Health and Security at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
In November 2003, the leaders left Johns Hopkins to join the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), and relaunched the Center as the Center for Biosecurity of UPMC. This move apparently split the organization in two, and it is unclear what happened to the old organization.
On April 30, 2013, the Center changed its name from "Center for Biosecurity of UPMC" to "UPMC Center for Health Security". This name change reflected a broadening of the scope of CHS's work.
In January 2017, the Center became part of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Its domain name changed from upmchealthsecurity.org to centerforhealthsecurity.org.
Funding
In 2002, the Center received a $1 million grant from the US federal government.
Before 2017, CHS was heavily reliant on government funding.
In January 2017, the Open Philanthropy Project awarded a $16 million grant over three years to the Center for Health Security.
Publications
The Center for Health Security publishes three online newsletters:
It also provides editorial oversight for the journal Health Security, which was launched in 2003 and called Biosecurity and Bioterrorism: Biodefense Strategy, Practice, and Science until 2015.
CHS also publishes the blog The Bifurcated Needle.
The Open Philanthropy Project's grant writeup of CHS noted several publications:
The Center has published in journals including JAMA and The Lancet. A full list of publications is available on the CHS website. As of February 2017, the list shows more than 400 publications.
Atlantic Storm
On January 14, 2005, CHS helped to host Atlantic Storm, a table-top smallpox bioterrorism simulation.
Operation Dark Winter
From June 22–23, 2001, CHS co-hosted Operation Dark Winter, a senior-level bioterrorism attack simulation involving a covert and widespread smallpox attack on the United States.