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Task Force Recommends LEADERS for Homeland Security

A homeland security task force has recommended LEADERS as a viable tool to help mitigate biological warfare and other potential disasters.

CHANTILLY, VA - A homeland security report by the National Conference of State Legislatures' (NCSL) Task Force on Protecting Democracy is recommending the Lightweight Epidemiology Advanced Detection & Emergency Response System (LEADERS) as a viable tool for state local governments to use in detecting and mitigating a biological warfare event, a significant disease outbreak or a natural or man-made disaster.

The report, A Call for State Action to Protect and Strengthen Democracy, provides states with best practices for implementing programs as well as a series of recommendations to the federal government on how best to work with the states on the homeland security issue.

The Task Force on Protecting Democracy, commissioned shortly after Sept. 11, was created to assist state legislatures in sharing information on issues of public safety, homeland security, emergency preparedness and public health. "The new National Strategy for Homeland Security recognizes the important role of state and local governments as the front-line troops in providing security against terrorism," said Sen. Richard T. Moore, a task force co-chair.

LEADERS was developed by the LEADERS Consortium, a group of technology companies, including OPTIMUS Corporation, Oracle, and ScenPro. The consortium was founded in 1993 with support from the United States Air Force Surgeon General's Office, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.