Beyond the Border Health Security Initiative

On February 4, 2011, President Obama and Prime Minister Harper issued “Beyond the Border: A Shared Vision for Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness” (BtB). The Declaration established a new long term partnership built upon a perimeter approach to security and economic competitiveness. The leaders called for a joint Action Plan to realize this goal within four areas of cooperation identified including: addressing threats early; trade facilitation, economic growth, and jobs; cross-border law; and critical infrastructure and cyber security.

The Action Plan requires DHS and Public Safety Canada to co-lead Chapter # 6 “Health Security” an initiative to develop a set of measures to reduce the impacts of shared health security risks through a risk assessment that will form the basis of specific planning initiatives. The results of this work will be delivered through a new, risk-based approach to planning, a cross-border exercise to test the plan and support through appropriate information and personnel sharing agreements. These efforts will result in multiple products resulting from a shared work plan in December 2013. 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Health Affairs, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, Public Safety Canada, and the Public Health Agency of Canada will discuss the results of this effort focusing on risk assessment, pathogen security, laboratory activities, health responders practices, health personnel and medical countermeasures sharing, and geomatic data integrations, information sharing guidelines and structures.