Survey to Assess Public Health Cybersecurity Readiness

A new Public Health Cybersecurity Readiness Survey will inform recommendations for grant funding and shape significant policies within the public health sector.

The survey is an effort of the Joint Public Health Cybersecurity Task Group, the Healthcare and Public Health Sector Coordinating Council (HSCC) and the Healthcare and Public Health Sector Joint Cyber Working Group in partnership with The University of Texas at Austin.

It aims to assess the cybersecurity preparedness of state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) public health agencies, their readiness to address cyber threats, and their specific needs for support.

The voluntary research survey, developed through a collaboration between public and private sectors, presents an opportunity to evaluate the current state of readiness within the public health subsector and to identify avenues for enhancing its resilience against evolving cyber threats.

The survey, which will remain open until Monday, Dec. 2, 2024, was introduced in a letter co-authored by the Co-Chairs of the Joint Public Health Cybersecurity Task Group: Leanne H. Field, Ph.D., executive committee member, and chair, Public Health Subsector, Health and Public Health Sector Coordinating Council, Cybersecurity Working Group, Clinical Professor and Founding Director, Public Health Program, at the University of Texas at Austin, and Bob Bastani, senior cybersecurity advisor, Critical Infrastructure Protection, Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, Department of Health, and Human Services.