[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 79 (Tuesday, April 27, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22214-22215]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-08167]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES


Request for Information (RFI): Developing the National Public 
Health Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Vector-Borne Diseases 
in Humans

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH), Office of 
the Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Request for information.

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SUMMARY: The development of a national strategy on vector-borne 
diseases including tickborne diseases was mandated by Congress. To 
inform development of the national strategy to address vector-borne 
diseases, HHS is issuing this Request for Information (RFI). The RFI 
solicits specific input regarding strategic goals, benchmarks, gaps, 
duplicative federally funded programs, and opportunities to enhance 
coordination data collection, research, and the development of 
diagnostics, treatments, vaccines and other related activities across 
HHS and other federal departments. The set of questions is available in 
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below.

DATES: To be considered, public comments must be received 
electronically no later than midnight eastern standard time (EST) on 
June 11, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Public comments should be submitted online at http://www.regulations.gov. All submissions must be submitted to the Docket 
named HHS-OASH-2021-0001 to ``Request for Information (RFI) from Non-
Federal Stakeholders: Developing the National Public Health Strategy 
for the Prevention and Control of Vector-Borne Diseases in Humans.'' 
Comments submitted electronically, including attachments, will be 
posted to the docket unchanged and available to view by the public. 
Evidence and information supporting your comment can be submitted as 
attachments. Please provide your contact information or organization 
name on the web-based form for possible follow up from HHS. There is a 
5,000 character limit on comments and maximum number (10) of attached 
files and maximum size (10 MB) of each attached file.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Kristen Honey, Chief Data 
Scientist, Senior Advisor, Office of the Assistant Secretary for 
Health, Department of Health and Human Services, 200 Independence 
Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20201, [email protected], (202) 853-
7680.

[[Page 22215]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  The development of a national strategy on 
vector-borne diseases including tickborne diseases was mandated by 
Congress through Section 404 of H.R. 1865, the Further Consolidated 
Appropriations Act. Section 404 is Section 317u of the Public Service 
Act and is named the Kay Hagan Tick Act (Act), in honor of Senator Kay 
Hagan, who died from complications of having tickborne Powassan virus 
disease. The Act requires HHS to develop a national strategy to address 
vector-borne diseases including tickborne diseases (National Strategy). 
Preparation of the National Strategy builds upon an inter-departmental 
effort to develop A National Public Health Framework for the Prevention 
and Control of Vector-Borne Diseases in Humans, released in September 
2020.\1\
    Vector-borne diseases, including diseases caused by mosquitoes, 
ticks, and fleas, pose an increasing threat to our nation's health. 
From 2004 to 2018, U.S. cases doubled and nine new pathogens--including 
chikungunya and Zika viruses--were introduced or 
discovered.2 3 Tickborne diseases account for nearly 80% of 
all U.S. vector-borne disease cases, with approximately 476,000 
Americans diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease 
annually.2 4 When not diagnosed and treated early, 
consequences of Lyme disease can include death due to acute carditis as 
well as late manifestations that can be difficult to treat and 
costly.\5\
    Local health departments and vector control organizations are the 
nation's first defense against vector-borne disease outbreaks. Yet some 
evidence indicates they lack the tools, resources, and training to 
prevent these outbreaks. For example, an assessment of mosquito control 
competency at the local-level found that during the 2016-2017 Zika 
emergency response 84% lacked one or more core vector control 
competencies.\6\ In parallel, widespread and growing insecticide-
resistance threatens the ability of standard pest control measures to 
control these disease vectors. Additional capacity is needed at state 
and local levels for vector tracking, testing, and control as well as 
the prevention of vector-borne disease transmission. Currently no 
effective population-level interventions that address tickborne 
diseases exist. No human vaccines against any vector-borne diseases 
endemic to the continental United States are widely available. 
Additionally, evidence-based community interventions (e.g., acaricide 
spraying, animal host vaccination) have not been studied sufficiently 
to support their use as effective measures to prevent vector-borne 
disease.
    Recognizing the numerous public health challenges and stakeholders 
involved in the prevention of vector-borne diseases, OASH is working 
closely with a range of federal partners to lead the development of the 
National Strategy. This five-year strategy will establish goals to 
address vector-borne diseases including improving surveillance, 
diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and research. It will also identify 
strategies and benchmarks to measure and drive progress toward 
achieving the goals. To develop this plan, OASH seeks input from 
subject matter experts, non-federal stakeholders, and other members of 
the public. Examples of these stakeholders may include health care 
providers, national professional organizations, state and local health 
departments, community-based and faith-based organizations, 
manufacturers, researchers, advocates, and persons affected by vector-
borne diseases.
    This RFI seeks public input on strengthening and improving the 
nation's response to vector-borne diseases in a number of areas. 
Responses may address one or more of the areas below:
    1. What do you recommend as the top priorities to address vector-
borne diseases in the United States during the next five years? Why are 
these the most important priorities?
    2. What goals, objectives, and strategies would you propose for 
each of your top priority areas?
    3. Do you have recommendations on specific research or programmatic 
efforts to improve surveillance, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment 
of vector-borne diseases?
    4. Any additional topics you wish to provide input on.
    The information received will inform the development of the 
National Strategy to address vector-borne diseases.

Kristen Honey,
Chief Data Scientist, Senior Advisor, Office of the Assistant Secretary 
for Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Endnotes

    \1\ A National Public Health Framework for the Prevention and 
Control of Vector-Borne Diseases in Humans, Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, 28 Sept. 2020, www.cdc.gov/ncezid/dvbd/pdf/Brochure_National_Framework_VBDs-P.pdf.
    \2\ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2019. National 
notifiable diseases surveillance system, 2018 annual tables of 
infectious disease data. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 
https://www.cdc.gov/nndss/infectious-tables.html.
    \3\ Rosenberg, R., N.P. Lindsey, M. Fischer, C.J. Gregory, A.F. 
Hinckley, P.S. Mead, G. Paz-Bailey, S.H. Waterman, N.A. Drexler, 
G.J. Kersh, et al. 2018. Vital signs: Trends in reported vectorborne 
disease cases--United States and territories, 2004-2016. MMWR. Morb. 
Mortal. Wkly. Rep. 67: 496-501. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/67/wr/mm6717e1.htm.
    \4\ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2018. Lyme 
Disease. https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/stats/humancases.html.
    \5\ Marx et al. Ann Intern Med. 2020;172(3):222-224. DOI: 
10.7326/L19-0483.
    \5\ National Association of County and City Health Officials. 
2017. NACCHO report: Vector control assessment in Zika virus 
priority jurisdictions. Washington, DC: National Association of 
County and City Health Officials; http://nacchopreparedness.org/naccho-report-vector-control-assessment-in-zika-virus-priority-jurisdictions.

[FR Doc. 2021-08167 Filed 4-26-21; 8:45 am]
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