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SALT LAKE CITY — A new report has pegged Utah as one of the least-prepared states in the nation in the event of an infectious disease outbreak. But state officials say such low marks aren't warranted.
"Utahns shouldn't be afraid," said Becky Ward, a health educator with the Utah Department of Health. "But they should be aware of the messages we are putting out there and follow up on them."
Many of the areas rated in a report released Thursday by the Trust for America's Health organization and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation make comparisons over a specific period of time, but also don't look at where the state has progressed, Ward said.
Utah meets some criteria set by researchers on the topic as far as available funding, disease detection and reporting measures in place, as well as where food safety is concerned, but the report indicates that the state falls short on flu vaccination rates, child immunization, a plan for climate change adaptation and in biosafety training among laboratory professionals.
While the report is useful in providing a look at where the state can do better, Ward said it doesn't show the big picture.
"We're there to serve the public and hopefully interrupt that spread of disease, but one of the biggest things we use are prevention messages and tools and vaccines are one of those things, as well as routine health screenings," she said.
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This year, the United States has recorded 16 cases of plague, while recent figures have revealed that in the UK, cases of "19th-century" diseases such as scurvy and scarlet fever are on the rise.Future success, Ward said, requires action from the public.
"So many public health messages that we put out there have real science to back them, and clinical evidence," she said. "It really behooves the public to listen to those and pay attention and help reduce some of those chronic disease rates as well as infectious disease rates."
Utah's flu vaccination rate was around 47 percent for the 2014-15 season, which is "not bad," Ward said, adding that it could be better. She said private providers aren't required to report vaccinations, so the data isn't an accurate representation of actual flu shots given out.
Researchers penalized Utah for allowing exemptions for childhood vaccines, though many states allow them. In Utah, immunization rates surpassed 91 percent last year, with 4.5 percent exempted for either personal, medical or religious reasons, according to the health department.
"We preach vaccination all the time," Ward said. "If your child does not get vaccinated or is undervaccinated, you run the risk of your child being exposed to these diseases and it's not a pretty thing."
Another category the report points at involves health care-associated infections, an area in which Utah is improving. Researchers also looked at outbreak surveillance for HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C and biosafety-trained personnel at state laboratories. Ward said that while the report indicates Utah is lacking in biosafety training, the state actually is prepared in that regard.
"It is important for all Utahns to know that for the Utah Department of Health and the Bureau of Epidemiology, this is what we do," Ward said. "We do what we can to interrupt the spread of disease."
More than half of states scored a five or lower out of 10 key indicators related to preventing, detecting, diagnosing and responding to outbreaks. Utah is among seven states that tied for the lowest score at accomplishing three of the 10 indicators.
The report issues a challenge for health officials across the country to redouble efforts to better protect Americans from new infectious disease threats and antibiotic-resistant superbugs, and resurging illnesses like whooping cough, tuberculosis and gonorrhea.
"We cannot afford to be complacent," Trust for America's Health director Jeffrey Levi said in a news release from the two groups. "Infectious diseases, which are largely preventable, disrupt the lives of millions of Americans and contribute to billions of dollars in unnecessary healthcare costs each year."
