CDC Data Modernization Initiative – Notable Milestones: 2019-2021
CDC’s Data Modernization Initiative (DMI) is a comprehensive strategy designed to move public health from tracking threats to predicting them. Expanding on the work of CDC’s Surveillance Strategy, the DMI is making a measurable difference our nation’s ability both to respond to the current pandemic and to find and face any future public health threat.
Below are some key advancements in our progress from 2019-2021.
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Complex threats expose gaps and prompt action
- Partners sound the alarmexternal icon that public health data are “moving slower than disease”
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Epidemics like opioids, suicide, and EVALI challenge public health’s capabilities
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Public Health Data Modernization Initiative (DMI) launches with a vision of world class data and analytics
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CDC answers the urgent call
- Focus on core surveillance systems improves early warning signals for biggest health threats
- CDC releases open data site to share technology resources and foster innovation
- New IT and Data Governance unifies CDC’s investments in modernization
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For the first time, Congress dedicates $50 million in FY2020pdf icon to support data modernization
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Growing support for modernization
- Data standards, such as FHIRexternal icon, and new federal policies push modernization forward
- CDC expands data-ready innovation with healthcare, academic, and research partners
- CDC awards first funding to states for data modernization and system interoperability
- DMI lays out a strategic roadmappdf icon to guide modernization and evaluation
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Volume and velocity of COVID-19 cases quickly overwhelms public health data systems
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Answering the pandemic
- Multiple CDC surveillance systems extend ability to track COVID-19
- CDC rapidly onboards health departments to automate transmission of electronic laboratory reports
- Huge leaps in electronic case reporting (eCR) automate real-time information exchange between thousands of healthcare facilities
- Provisional COVID-19 death data and new data on excess deaths informs response
- CDC and federal agencies stand up experimental data to track mental, social, and economic health
- CDC integrates data from multiple core surveillance systems into COVID Tracker interface
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Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act designates $500 million to support rapid modernization
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Accelerating the strategy
- Accelerated investments and projects increase capacity to rapidly detect and respond to the pandemic
- Assigned Implementation Leads align, coordinate, monitor, and measure progress toward future state
- CDC expands programs for state-of-the-art data science, visualization, and informatics training
- CDC and the U.S. Digital Serviceexternal icon pilot pandemic-ready systemspdf icon at state and local health departments
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Congress dedicates $50 million in FY2021 to continue data modernization activities
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The American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act provides an additional $500 million to CDC to advance surveillance and analytics infrastructure, as well as to establish a forecasting center for emerging biological threats.
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Expanding our capabilities
- A new $3 billion, multi-year grant program supports state and local workforce development.
- CDC built an immunization data lake to handle the massive COVID-19 vaccine roll-out and delivery.
- CDC created a cloud-based platform to catalogue, analyze, and publish findings faster than previously possible.
- Ongoing improvements to data collection and sharing improve health equity.
- In August 2021, CDC stands up the new National Center for Epidemic Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics.
- New cloud-based and computational capabilities enable CDC to process millions of unique SARS-CoV-2 genome sequences.
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The path to prevention
- Sustainable investments will ensure lifesaving prevention and response for COVID-19 and beyond