Posted: | June 10, 2021 02:16 PM |
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From: | Senator Lisa M. Boscola and Sen. Mario M. Scavello, Sen. John T. Yudichak |
To: | All Senate members |
Subject: | Creation of a Post-Pandemic Task Force for Future Pandemic Response and Risk Mitigation in Pennsylvania |
The economic, social, and civic implications stemming from government’s response to the COVID-19 Pandemic are unprecedented. The Commonwealth cannot afford to depend on the federal government or other states to map out a strategy of response to future crises. With the recent changes to the Pennsylvania Constitution regarding emergency declarations, the legislature now plays a far more critical role to handling responses in a future crisis. It is incumbent on us to develop a uniform strategy for future pandemics in a non-partisan way. As the Commonwealth recovers, no better opportunity exists to evaluate and assess the response of the Commonwealth to arguably the largest disruptive event of the last century. Acknowledging the political divide over the issue, we need a task force that takes a non-partisan view with clear goals and objectives for developing a construct that will enable policy makers to mitigate risk in future events. Something similar to that which was undertaken by the US government following September 11th. The proposed task force will have a defined oversight model, and be comprised of appointed experts from public health, education, industry, and policy arenas. The task force will concentrate efforts on accurately and appropriately capturing the chronology, lessons learned, and best practices associated with the Commonwealth’s response to protecting its citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal will be to develop a usable and concise operational playbook that will serve as a guide for decision makers when and if future such pandemics occur. Such a guide would provide answers, insights, and direction on topics and elements of high relevance such as:
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