The Office of Public Health Preparedness (PHP) has a commitment to the health and safety of all citizens of Frederick County. We are dedicated to developing, maintaining, and exercising plans to prepare our community for public health emergencies.

In any incident of national significance- outbreaks of disease, natural disasters or acts of terrorism, including biological warfare - citizens need to know where to go for answers. This website will be updated with new information as situations change. You can find guidelines for you and your family on how to prepare for disasters and links to valuable sources of information. You can also call the Frederick County Situation Line at (301) 600-4786 to get current information.

Individual Preparedness
A community’s preparedness is related to how well prepared its residents are. We encourage you to think about how you and your family can prepare for any type of emergency. Whether you need to stay at home for a few days due to a blizzard, hurricane, or a bioterrorist event, you’ll need many of the same supplies. For more information about ways you can prepare for an emergency, check out the Everybody Ready! brochure and the Plan 9 brochure. 

Seniors, are you prepared for an emergency? We have a brochure you can see here that will help you organize your medication needs in the event of an emergency.

PHP is committed to protecting our community from bioterrorist threats and we have plans in place for mass dispensing medication that might be needed in a public health emergency. You can get information about Getting Medicine in an Emergency here.

Our local plans are connected to state and federal plans, such as the Strategic National Stockpile and the Cities Readiness Initiative. The Frederick County Health Department's Medical Countermeasure Dispensing and Distribution (MCMDD) Annex (formerly known as the Strategic National Stockpile Plan) is available for review here.

For more information about state and Federal plans, follow these links:

• CDC’s Cities Readiness Initiative
• CDC's Strategic National Stockpile
  
• Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's Office of Preparedness and Response

If you’re interested in helping during an exercise or a disaster, please register at MD Responds to join the online registration system for medical and health responders for the State of Maryland.