HHS CDC - National Electronic Disease Surveillance System - MRAS

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), on behalf of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), is conducting market research to support the modernization and support of the National Electronic Disease Surveillance System (NEDSS) Base System (NBS). This initiative is part of the broader mission led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Office of Public Health Data, Surveillance, and Technology (OPHDST). The primary goal is to enhance public health data access, exchange, and integration across various levels while advancing open data dissemination to inform decision-making processes effectively.

The work requested involves modernizing NBS to align with emerging public health needs and standards. The modernization efforts will focus on improving core surveillance capabilities defined by both CDC and state, tribal, local, and territorial (STLT) health jurisdictions. Since its inception in 2003, NBS has been pivotal in providing rapid support for public health challenges through efficient data exchange and streamlined workflows. The future iterations aim to enable coordinated nationwide responses by ensuring seamless interoperability with healthcare systems while minimizing effort and costs for public health agencies.

This modernization aligns with CDC's Public Health Data Strategy (PHDS), which outlines essential actions in data exchange across healthcare and public health sectors. PHDS aims to strengthen public health data cores, accelerate access to analytical solutions for investigations, visualize insights for informed actions, and promote open interoperable data systems. Through these efforts, CDC seeks to improve national response readiness and overall health outcomes.

Case surveillance remains a cornerstone of public health practice as it helps officials understand disease dynamics within communities. It involves collecting critical information from healthcare facilities about reportable diseases a process known as "case reporting." STLTs then notify CDC about specific conditions through "case notification," enabling national tracking via the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS). This system monitors approximately 120 notifiable diseases while also accommodating additional conditions based on jurisdictional discretion.