FEMA ADVISORY – June 1, 2020

Coronavirus Pandemic: FEMA Administrator Letter to Emergency Managers

Attached is FEMA Administrator Pete Gaynor’s June 1, 2020 letter to the Nation’s Emergency Managers, which highlights the approach to the three-month mark of our Nation’s response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season officially begins today.

In this letter, Administrator Gaynor addresses: the importance of all-hazards preparedness in a COVID-19 environment; the forecast for the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season; the release of the COVID-19 Pandemic Operational Guidance for the 2020 Hurricane Season; the release of the All-Hazards Preparedness in a Pandemic Exercise Starter Kit along with the recently released Exercise Starter Kit for Reconstituting Operations; as well as the use of Fiscal Year 2020 Emergency Management Performance Grant Program (EMPG) funds and Supplemental funds.  

Administrator Gaynor’s guidance is a follow-on to his first two letters to emergency managers from March 27, 2020 and April 16, 2020.

The letter is available on the FEMA website, as well.        

Contact Us

If you have any questions regarding this FEMA Advisory, please contact FEMA Office of External Affairs, Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs Division:

• Congressional Affairs at (202) 646-4500 or at FEMA-Congressional-Affairs@fema.dhs.gov
• Intergovernmental Affairs at (202) 646-3444 or at FEMA-IGA@fema.dhs.gov
• Tribal Affairs at (202) 646-3444 or at FEMA-Tribal@fema.dhs.gov
• Private Sector Engagement at (202) 646-3444 or at nbeoc@max.gov

Follow Us

Follow FEMA on social media at: Visit the FEMA Blog, follow @FEMA or @FEMAEspanol on Twitter, FEMA or FEMA Espanol on Facebook, @FEMA on Instagram, and view videos on the FEMA YouTube channel, and Administrator Pete Gaynor on Twitter @FEMA_Pete.

FEMA Mission

To help people before, during and after disasters.

• COVID-19 to Nations EMs_letter 3_FINAL.pdf
• FEMA_Advisory_F1LettertoEmergencyManagers_FINAL_20200601.pdf

FEMA ADVISORY – June 1, 2020

Coronavirus Pandemic: Whole-of-America Response

Attached you will find today’s FEMA Daily Briefing Points for the Whole-of-America response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. These briefing points include Topline Messages, as well as information By the Numbers; Supply Chain Task Force; FEMA and Department of Health and Human Services Response; and Guidance from Federal Agencies.

Topline messaging includes:

• On June 1, HHS announced a task order with Emergent BioSolutions to advance manufacturing capabilities for a potential COVID-19 vaccine as well as therapeutics.

• The task order, worth approximately $628 million, falls under an existing contract with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.
• Under the order, Emergent will commit contract development and manufacturing organization drug substance and drug product manufacturing capacity valued at approximately $542.75 million for production of COVID-19 vaccine candidates through 2021.

• On May 30, the FDA took steps to further support the development of COVID-19 tests for at-home self-collection by posting a voluntary emergency use authorization (EUA) template for at-home sample collection kits to its website. The template outlines the data and information that developers should submit to facilitate the EUA process.
• As of May 31, FEMA has made 7,158 deliveries of medical supplies to nursing homes to all 53 states and territories. FEMA is coordinating two shipments totaling a 14-day supply of personal protective equipment to all 15,400 Medicaid and Medicare-certified nursing homes. The shipments are meant to supplement existing efforts to provide equipment to nursing homes.
• As of May 31, FEMA, HHS, and the private sector combined have coordinated the delivery of or are currently shipping: 92.1 million N95 respirators, 146.1 million surgical masks, 12.8 million face shields, 35 million surgical gowns and over 1 billion gloves.
• To support the Administration’s Testing Blueprint, FEMA is working to source and procure testing material – specifically, testing swabs and transport media.

• FEMA has procured and delivered 13.1 million swabs and 8 million units of media so far in the month of May.
• The FEMA-sourced material will be provided to states, territories and tribes for a limited duration to help increase testing capacity in support of their individualized plans.

• As of May 31, CDC, state, and local public health labs and other laboratories have tested more than 16.7 million samples.

• As of May 29, the FDA has issued 114 individual emergency use authorizations (EAU) for test kit manufacturers and laboratories, including 12 antibody tests and one antigen test.

Contact Us

If you have any questions regarding this FEMA Advisory, please contact FEMA Office of External Affairs, Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs Division:

• Congressional Affairs at (202) 646-4500 or at FEMA-Congressional-Affairs@fema.dhs.gov
• Intergovernmental Affairs at (202) 646-3444 or at FEMA-IGA@fema.dhs.gov
• Tribal Affairs at (202) 646-3444 or at FEMA-Tribal@fema.dhs.gov
• Private Sector Engagement at (202) 646-3444 or at nbeoc@max.gov

Follow Us

Follow FEMA on social media at: Visit the FEMA Blog, follow @FEMA or @FEMAEspanol on Twitter, FEMA or FEMA Espanol on Facebook, @FEMA on Instagram, and view videos on the FEMA YouTube channel, and Administrator Pete Gaynor on Twitter @FEMA_Pete.

FEMA Mission

To help people before, during and after disasters.

• FEMA_Advisory_COVID19DailyBriefingPoints_20200601.pdf
• ESF15_DailyBriefingPoints_20200601 FINAL.pdf