CDC Establishes New Disease Forecasting Center

This week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced the creation of a new center designed to advance the use of forecasting and outbreak analytics in public health decision making. According to the CDC, once established, the Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics will bring together next-generation public health data, expert disease modelers, public health emergency responders, and high-quality communications experts to meet the needs of decision makers.

The new center will accelerate access to and use of data for public health decision-makers who need information to mitigate the effects of disease threats, such as social and economic disruption. The center will also prioritize equity and accessibility while serving as a hub for innovation and research on disease modeling.

The center will be started with funding from the American Rescue Plan Act and will focus on the following three key functions:

• Predict: Undertake modeling and forecasting; enhance the ability to determine foundational data sources needed; support research and innovation in outbreak analytics and science for real-time action; and establish appropriate forecasting horizons.

• Connect: Expand broad capability for data sharing and integration; maximize interoperability with data standards and utilize open-source software and application programming interface capabilities with existing and new data streams from the public health ecosystem and beyond.

• Inform: Translate and communicate forecasts; connect with key decision-makers across sectors including government, business, and nonprofits, along with individuals with strong intergovernmental affairs and communication capacity for action.

Additional information from CDC on the new center is available here.