4. Special Mass Care and Emergency Assistance Considerations

The context in which a chemical incident occurs will determine which response and recovery plans are appropriate and define the activities that follow. The need for mass care in response to a chemical incident occurs against a backdrop of operational constraints governed by other public health considerations. While public health emergencies are rare, the fact that a chemical incident can be triggered by another disaster (for example, an earthquake or a hurricane, as described in the Prologue) implies that mass care needs arising from a chemical incident may often occur in the context of a larger ongoing event that has its own mass care needs. In 2020, for example, response and recovery to natural disasters incidents in the United States required adaptations to mass care and emergency assistance service plans – particularly mass sheltering assistance – due to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.⁸¹ If there are stresses on PPE supplies due to other ongoing events, both responders to the chemical incident and mass care service providers may face shortages in PPE that hamper their ability to do their jobs safely.

Footnotes

81. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2020, September 1). Stockpile Products. Public Health Emergency, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.