Who We Are
Protecting the health of communities in a globally mobile world
For over 50 years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has focused on controlling, containing, and eliminating diseases that know no borders. Today, globalization makes it easier to move people and goods across the world in a short time. But signs and symptoms of diseases still may take days, weeks, or even years to appear. CDC’s Division of Global Migration and Quarantine (DGMQ) focuses on activities that lessen the public health risks of rapid global travel because diseases and outbreaks can quickly cross international borders.
- One million people travel to the United States every day.
- Americans take 75 million trips each year.
- 320 million travelers arrive in the United States through more than 300 ports of entry each year.
DGMQ meets the challenges of maintaining public health security in a globally mobile world through activities that include protecting public health in US communities, at US borders, and for Americans traveling or living abroad. DGMQ is made up of 5 main topic areas:
- Travelers’ Health
- Immigrant, Refugee, and Migrant Health
- Quarantine and Border Health Services
- Community Interventions for Infection Control
- US-Mexico Health
The mission of DGMQ is to reduce morbidity and mortality among immigrants, refugees, travelers, expatriates, and other globally mobile populations, and to prevent the introduction, transmission, and spread of communicable diseases through regulation, science, research, preparedness, and response.