Dr. Herbert Wolfe currently serves as the Acting Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s Office of Health Security (OHS). In this role, he serves as the principal advisor to the DHS Secretary and other DHS senior leadership on medical and public health issues related to natural disasters, border health, pandemic response, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters. Since its stand-up in July 2022, the OHS has settled into its mission of medical, workforce health and safety, and public health authority for DHS and is looking to the future. Under Dr. Wolfe’s leadership, OHS has continued to mature in its role of providing a wide range of medical and public health initiatives internal and external to DHS, many of which fall under the AMSUS theme of serving those who serve our Nation. This plenary will cover a few key instances in its first year where the Office of Health Security delivered on its mission- its support of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), its thorough response to a death in custody at a port of entry, and its commitment to the Public Health Service. OHS continues to develop its vision for how OHS will readily meet the interdisciplinary and all-hazards health security challenges of tomorrow.
•Identify the progress of OHS
•State the mission and priorities of OHS
•Identify case studies related to public health, medical and workforce health and safety operations that DHS has led or supported