North Star Architecture Redraws the “Blueprint” for Public Health Data

For decades, public health staff have struggled under the weight of too many different processes, hard-to-use tools that aren’t scalable or reusable, and systems that can’t “speak the same language.” As we move together to modernize, we need a common framework for providing data – and the access to that data – in ways that work for everyone.

The North Star Architecture is a core component of CDC’s approach for making public health data work better. When we have common technologies in place, CDC and our state and local partners will spend less time managing data, and more time doing the lifesaving work of public health.

In 2022, we worked with partners to outline the vision for what this new framework will look like and began the first steps towards concrete implementation. For example, we’ve been working to make it easier to share data across the public health community. We’re developing a common “front door” for data being sent to CDC, eliminating the need for jurisdictions to send the same data in multiple formats to multiple places at CDC. We’re also expanding the functionality of CDC’s “universal data router” beyond COVID-19 and mpox diagnostic test results.

And beyond just data sharing, we’re investing in the modernization of CDC’s flagship integrated information system that helps local, state, and territorial public health departments manage reportable disease data, and beginning to build and test a set of flexible and secure digital tools, or “building blocks,” that can be used by CDC and public health partners alike.

While the specifics of the North Star Architecture are still in development, these ideas are already moving us faster toward a response-ready public health ecosystem.