What is triple response?

The U.S. lacks a single standard for Ebola response. If it were to have a standard response, what should that response be?

• see http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/10/12/examining-the-nations-ebola-response/17059283/

• Answer:

  The article is correct in that we don't have a National Healthcare System - we have individual state systems - and often individual cities (think NY, LA, Chicago etc...). This is true well beyond infectious outbreaks like Ebola, and applies more broadly to all of healthcare globally.  That reality can best be summarized (somewhat brutally) this way. #1 – “When it comes to health, your zip [or country] code matters more than your genetic code.” Dr. Tony Iton – The California Endowment Health Journalism Fellowships 2013 [as tweeted by @taralohan http://hc4.us/TaraLohan1 at #cehjf13] http://www.forbes.com/sites/danmunro/2013/12/22/top-ten-healthcare-quotes-for-2013/ Dallas is but one example. Absent a national system (not likely in my lifetime), we will have a wide variety of success and failure with handling cases like Ebola. Emory University, in contrast, did everything a center of excellence does (thus the designation). If you have Ebola (and if you're trying to contain Ebola), Emory University is a great national resource.   This is also why one idea I heard recently has merit. For cases like Ebola that pose an infectious threat nationally - the idea would be to have 6-8 "centers" around the country specifically chartered to handle all Ebola patients (like Emory). Ebola patients would then be air-lifted to these facilities where both their treatment and their prognosis would maximize the best outcome and safety to all.  The CDC is a good candidate for taking ownership of such a program, but today it lacks both the budget and legal authority to do either.