Centers for Disease Control and Prevention timeline

Last updated March 21, 2023

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, formed in 1946, is the leading national public health institute of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Its main goal is to protect public health and safety through the control and prevention of disease, injury, and disability in the US and internationally.

1940s

1946 – The Communicable Disease Center is organized in Atlanta, Georgia on July 1
1947 – In San Francisco, CDC took over the Public Health Service Plague Laboratory, thus acquiring an Epidemiology Division.
1948 – CDC gained worldwide recognition for the quality and quantity of its contributions to the taxonomy of the Enterobacteriaceae .
1949 – As a result of the Cold War, CDC initiated programs to fight biological warfare, "an exotic new threat to health."

1950s

1950 – Fifteen CDC staffers conducted the first investigation of an epidemic of polio in Paulding County, Ohio.
1951 – The Epidemic Intelligence Service was established to help protect against biological warfare and manmade epidemics.
1952 – Surgeon General Dr. Leonard A. Scheele reported that the Communicable Disease Center was ready to combat possible biological warfare.
1953 – CDC reported first case of rabies in a bat.
1954 – Alexander D. Langmuir, M.D., M.P.H., set up a leptospirosis laboratory in Jacksonville, Florida.
1955 – CDC established the Polio Surveillance Program.
1956 – Dr. William Cherry found the first practical use for the fluorescent technique, which was successful in identifying pathogens that might be used in biological warfare.
1957 – National guidelines for influenza vaccine were developed.
1958 – A CDC team traveled overseas, for the first time, to Southeast Asia to respond to an epidemic of cholera and smallpox.
1959 – Dr. Robert Kissling developed the fluorescent antibody test for rabies, first used in a field trial with 100 percent accuracy.

1960s

1960 – The Tuberculosis Program moved from the Public Health Service to CDC.
1961 – CDC took over publication of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).
1962 – CDC played a key role in one of the greatest triumphs of public health: the eradication of smallpox.
1963 – CDC tested the newly developed jet injector vaccine for smallpox.
1964 – The first Surgeon General's report linking smoking to lung cancer was released. It stated that "cigarette smoking is a health hazard of sufficient importance in the United States to warrant appropriate remedial action."
1965 – New surveillance systems added to the original National Surveillance Program of 1952 included measles, shigellosis, tetanus, and trichinosis.
1966 – CDC announced a national measles eradication campaign at the American Public Health Association meeting.
1967 – The Foreign Quarantine Service, one of the oldest and most prestigious units of the Public Health Service, joined CDC.
1968 – CDC investigated an unidentified, highly infectious respiratory disease in Pontiac, Michigan, later identified as Legionellosis (also known by its two forms, Legionnaires' disease and Pontiac fever).
1969 – CDC constructed a "biocontainment lab" to protect scientists while they work with deadly and infectious pathogens.

1970s

1970 – The Communicable Disease Center became the Center for Disease Control.
1971 – The National Center for Health Statistics conducted the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, taking a snapshot of the health status of Americans.
1972 – Tuskegee Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male was brought to public attention.
1973 – The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is transferred into CDC.^[1] It had been created in its present form through the December 29, 1970 Occupational Safety and Health Act,^[2] and its direct predecessor organization, the Division of Industrial Hygiene, dated back to 1914.^[3]
1973 – Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) reported that emissions of lead in residential areas constitute a public health threat, contrary to popular assumption at the time.
1974 – CDC planned a major campaign to reverse the downward trend in the number of Americans immunized.
1975 – The last victim of variola major smallpox, the more severe form of the disease, was reported.
1976 – CDC investigated two outbreaks of a previously unknown deadly hemorrhagic fever, later known as Ebola, in Zaire and Sudan.
1977 – Global eradication of smallpox was achieved.
1978 – Alcorn County, Mississippi, reported cases of the first outbreak of tuberculosis resistance to previously effective drugs.
1979 – First Healthy People report published.

1980s

1980 – Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report published the first report on the newly recognized toxic shock syndrome, an illness associated with tampon use.
1981 – The first diagnosis of the fatal disease later known as AIDS was described in the June 5, 1981, issue of MMWR.
1982 – CDC advised of the possible risk of Reye syndrome associated with the use of aspirin by children with chickenpox and flu-like symptoms.
1983 – CDC established a Violence Epidemiology Branch to apply public health prevention strategies to child abuse, homicide, and suicide.
1984 – CDC studied Vietnam veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange during combat and later fathered babies; no increased risk of birth defects was found.
1985 – With other government organizations, CDC sponsored the first International AIDS Conference, which took place in Atlanta.
1986 – The Office on Smoking and Health, which targets the nation's primary preventable health problem, became part of CDC.
1987 – The National Center for Health Statistics is transferred into CDC.^[4] Its earliest predecessor was created in 1899.^[5]
1987 – CDC reported that about 7,000 workers die on the job annually; 42 percent of female workers who die on the job are murdered.
1988 – CDC established the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.
1989 – CDC reported the 100,000th AIDS case in the United States.

1990s

1990 – For the first time, CDC reported the possible transmission of HIV from a dentist to a patient in Florida during an invasive procedure.
1991 – A CDC study showed that one in five teen deaths is gun-related, and firearm death rates for male teens exceeded those for all natural causes of death.
1992 – The National Academy of Sciences reported on a dangerous new phenomenon: the emergence of new and virulent diseases that are resistant to antibiotics.
1993 – CDC reported that 200,000 Americans had died of AIDS since the epidemic began.
1994 – CDC published a frank brochure on how condoms reduce the transmission of the AIDS virus.
1995 – CDC recommended offering HIV testing to all pregnant women.
1996 – CDC, in partnership with the International Society for Travel Medicine, initiated the GeoSentinel surveillance network to improve travel medicine.
1997 – CDC participated in the nationally televised White House event of the Presidential Apology for the Tuskegee Study.
1998 – For the first time since 1981, AIDS was diagnosed in more African-American and Hispanic men than in gay white men.
1999 – CDC's Laboratory Response Network was established.

2000s

2000 – CDC identified an outbreak of HIV-related tuberculosis among young transgender people in New York and Boston.
2001 – CDC learned of the first of the 2001 anthrax attacks.
2002 – CDC reported that U.S. newborn HIV infections were down 80 percent since 1981.
2003 – Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) was first reported in Asia. CDC provided guidance for surveillance, clinical and laboratory evaluation, and reporting.
2004 – CDC provided support for laws restricting access to over-the-counter medications used in methamphetamine production in Georgia.
2005 – Rubella was eliminated in the United States.
2006 – CDC celebrates its 60th anniversary.
2006 – CDC awarded "$5.2 million to evaluate community strategies to reduce impact of pandemic influenza."
2007 – CDC published their report, which introduced a series of brochures targeted at specific groups, such as the Pandemic Influenza Community Mitigation Interim Planning Guide for Individuals and Families.^[6] The report was produced in collaboration with dozens of federal agencies. It introduced concepts such as "cough etiquette", "early, targeted, and layered nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs)", "hand hygiene", "nonpharmaceutical intervention (NPI)", and "social distancing".^[6]^: 70 In the report's introduction, a chart illustrates how expanding "medical surge capacity", "reducing the anticipated demand for services", and "limiting disease transmission" can delay a "rapid upswing of cases" and lower the "epidemic peak".^[6]^: 17 This would "allow a better match between the number of ill persons requiring hospitalization and the nation's capacity to provide medical care for such people."^[6]^: 18 This chart was shared on social media in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.^[7]

2010s

2013 – CDC releases first report to categorize threats by hazard level.^[8]
2014 – CDC established a Modeling Task Force capable of generating estimates of risk for importation of cases of Ebola from West African countries like Mali to the United States.^[9]^[10]

Related Research Articles

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

A pandemic is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has spread across a large region, for instance multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial number of individuals. A widespread endemic disease with a stable number of infected individuals is not a pandemic. Widespread endemic diseases with a stable number of infected individuals such as recurrences of seasonal influenza are generally excluded as they occur simultaneously in large regions of the globe rather than being spread worldwide.

A zoonosis or zoonotic disease is an infectious disease of humans caused by a pathogen that can jump from a non-human to a human and vice versa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HIV/AIDS in the United States</span> Epidemic in the United States

The AIDS epidemic, caused by HIV, found its way to the United States between the 1970s and 1980s, but was first noticed after doctors discovered clusters of Kaposi's sarcoma and pneumocystis pneumonia in homosexual men in Los Angeles, New York City, and San Francisco in 1981. Treatment of HIV/AIDS is primarily via the use of multiple antiretroviral drugs, and education programs to help people avoid infection.

In epidemiology, an outbreak is a sudden increase in occurrences of a disease when cases are in excess of normal expectancy for the location or season. It may affect a small and localized group or impact upon thousands of people across an entire continent. The number of cases varies according to the disease-causing agent, and the size and type of previous and existing exposure to the agent. Outbreaks include many epidemics, which term is normally only for infectious diseases, as well as diseases with an environmental origin, such as a water or foodborne disease. They may affect a region in a country or a group of countries. Pandemics are near-global disease outbreaks when multiple and various countries around the Earth are soon infected.

<i>Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report</i> Weekly epidemiological report published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC)

The Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) is a weekly epidemiological digest for the United States published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It was originally established as Weekly Health Index in 1930, changing its title to Weekly Mortality Index in 1941 and Morbidity and Mortality in 1952. It acquired its current name in 1976. It is the main vehicle for publishing public health information and recommendations that have been received by the CDC from state health departments. Material published in the report is in the public domain and may be reprinted without permission. As of 2019, the journal's editor-in-chief is Charlotte Kent.

The State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology VECTOR, also known as the Vector Institute, is a biological research center in Koltsovo, Novosibirsk Oblast, Russia. It has research facilities and capabilities for all levels of Biological Hazard, CDC Levels 1–4. It is one of two official repositories for the now-eradicated smallpox virus, and was part of the system of laboratories known as the Biopreparat.

The Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) is a program of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The modern EIS is a two-year, hands-on post-doctoral training program in epidemiology, with a focus on field work.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) is an agency of the European Union (EU) whose mission is to strengthen Europe's defences against infectious diseases. It covers a wide spectrum of activities, such as: surveillance, epidemic intelligence, response, scientific advice, microbiology, preparedness, public health training, international relations, health communication, and the scientific journal Eurosurveillance. The centre was established in 2004 and is headquartered in Solna, Sweden.

Disease surveillance is an epidemiological practice by which the spread of disease is monitored in order to establish patterns of progression. The main role of disease surveillance is to predict, observe, and minimize the harm caused by outbreak, epidemic, and pandemic situations, as well as increase knowledge about which factors contribute to such circumstances. A key part of modern disease surveillance is the practice of disease case reporting.

The pandemic severity index (PSI) was a proposed classification scale for reporting the severity of influenza pandemics in the United States. The PSI was accompanied by a set of guidelines intended to help communicate appropriate actions for communities to follow in potential pandemic situations. Released by the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on February 1, 2007, the PSI was designed to resemble the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale classification scheme. The index was replaced by the Pandemic Severity Assessment Framework in 2014, which uses quadrants based on transmissibility and clinical severity rather than a linear scale.

Thomas R. Frieden is an American infectious disease and public health physician. He serves as president and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, a $225 million, five-year initiative to prevent epidemics and cardiovascular disease.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Influenza-like illness</span> Medical diagnosis

Influenza-like illness (ILI), also known as flu-like syndrome or flu-like symptoms, is a medical diagnosis of possible influenza or other illness causing a set of common symptoms. These include fever, shivering, chills, malaise, dry cough, loss of appetite, body aches, and nausea, sneezing typically in connection with a sudden onset of illness. In most cases, the symptoms are caused by cytokines released by immune system activation, and are thus relatively non-specific.

Mary Guinan, Ph.D., M.D. is an American doctor specializing in public health, virology, and epidemiology. She is the dean at the School of Community Health Sciences at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Guinan is known for her work in the initial investigation of the HIV/AIDS epidemic for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The book and subsequent film And the Band Played On, by Randy Shilts documented her efforts regarding these issues; she was played by Glenne Headly. Later on, she became the first female State Health Officer appointed to the Nevada government. Guinan also became president of the American Medical Woman's Association, after 40 years of membership.

During the 1972–1973 flu season in the Northern Hemisphere, a new variant of influenza, dubbed the 'London flu' by the press in the United States, was responsible for epidemics in many countries. 'London flu' was caused by a variant of influenza A/H3N2 that was first isolated in India in mid-1971 but only identified as a distinct strain in England in January, 1972.

Makerere University Walter Reed Project (MUWRP) was established in 2002 for the primary purpose of HIV vaccine development and building of vaccine testing capability in Uganda. It is one of the 5 international research sites established by the Department of Defense (DoD) United States HIV Research Program (MHRP), a program centered at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) in Silver Spring, Maryland. MUWRP's main facility is centrally located in Kampala, near the Makerere University College of Health Sciences where the MUWRP laboratory is located. The main facility includes the clinic, administrative and data offices.

The Norwegian Institute of Public Health is responsible for maintaining and revising the list of notifiable diseases in Norway and participates in the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the World Health Organization's surveillance of infectious diseases. The notifiable diseases are classified into Group A, Group B and Group C diseases, depending on the procedure for reporting the disease.

Kathleen A. Ethier is an American social psychologist and public health official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In 2016, she was appointed the Director of CDC's Division of Adolescent and School Health in the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention. As of 2020, Ethier is also head of the CDC's community mitigation task force for the COVID-19 pandemic.

<i>Weekly Epidemiological Record</i> Academic journal

The Weekly Epidemiological Record (WER) is a publication of the World Health Organization (WHO) that as of 2020 is in its 95th volume. It is published in English and French with the alternative title of the Relevé épidémiologique hebdomadaire. It aims to rapidly disseminate epidemiological information about outbreaks of diseases under the International Health Regulations and about communicable diseases of public health importance. This includes emerging or re-emerging diseases.

References

↑ Etheridge, Elizabeth W. (1992-02-20). Sentinel for Health: A History of the Centers for Disease Control . University of California Press. pp. 229–231, 315–316. ISBN 978-0-520-91041-6.
↑ About NIOSH. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
↑ The President's Report on Occupational Safety and Health. Commerce Clearing House. 1972. pp. 153–154.
↑ About NCHS: Celebrating 50 Years
↑ "Records of the Public Health Service [PHS], 1912-1968". National Archives. 2016-08-15. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
1 2 3 4 Interim Pre-Pandemic Planning Guidance: Community Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Mitigation in the United States—Early, Targeted, Layered Use of Nonpharmaceutical Interventions (PDF). CDC (Report). February 2007. p. 107. CS108488
↑ CDC 2007 graph, March 6, 2020, retrieved March 7, 2020
↑ 3 germs are urgent threats to USA's health, CDC says, September 16, 2013
↑ Meltzer, Martin I. (2016). "Modeling in Real Time During the Ebola Response". MMWR Supplements. 65 (3): 85–89. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.su6503a12 . eISSN 2380-8942. ISSN 2380-8950. PMID 27387097 . Retrieved March 7, 2020.
↑ Begley, Sharon (February 14, 2020), "Disease modelers gaze into their computers to see the future of Covid-19, and it isn't good", STAT, retrieved March 7, 2020

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[:10-1] Etheridge, Elizabeth W. (1992-02-20). Sentinel for Health: A History of the Centers for Disease Control . University of California Press. pp. 229–231, 315–316. ISBN 978-0-520-91041-6.

[about-2] About NIOSH. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

[:9-3] The President's Report on Occupational Safety and Health. Commerce Clearing House. 1972. pp. 153–154.

[about_NCHS-4] About NCHS: Celebrating 50 Years

[:2-5] "Records of the Public Health Service [PHS], 1912-1968". National Archives. 2016-08-15. Retrieved 2021-08-04.

[CDC_200702_prepandemic-6] 1 2 3 4 Interim Pre-Pandemic Planning Guidance: Community Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Mitigation in the United States—Early, Targeted, Layered Use of Nonpharmaceutical Interventions (PDF). CDC (Report). February 2007. p. 107. CS108488

[Scuilla_20200306-7] CDC 2007 graph, March 6, 2020, retrieved March 7, 2020

[8] 3 germs are urgent threats to USA's health, CDC says, September 16, 2013

[MMWR_2016_Meltzer-9] Meltzer, Martin I. (2016). "Modeling in Real Time During the Ebola Response". MMWR Supplements. 65 (3): 85–89. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.su6503a12 . eISSN 2380-8942. ISSN 2380-8950. PMID 27387097 . Retrieved March 7, 2020.

[STAT_Begley_20200214-10] Begley, Sharon (February 14, 2020), "Disease modelers gaze into their computers to see the future of Covid-19, and it isn't good", STAT, retrieved March 7, 2020

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