Webinar Series: BP 5 Work Plan for Local Health Departments

Frequently Asked Questions

Local Health Department Work Plan Questions

Item #2: Providing input for the Program Measures and Healthcare Coalition Development Assessment.

Question: What is expected? Are there templates to be used?

Answer: The Program Measures questionnaires and the Healthcare Coalition Development Assessment should be conducted during the healthcare coalition meetings. Templates have been created and will be placed on the KDHE website for you to submit feedback that relates to local health department activities and collaborations with other agencies within the coalition for preparedness purposes.

Item #3: Exercise Requirements and BP 5 Deadline

Question: What if exercise is not scheduled until after the April 17, 2017 deadline?

Answer: The reason that the deadlines for this budget period have been moved up is because it is the last budget period in this project. Therefore, in order to meet the state reporting deadlines to the federal government, we are asking that information and documents be submitted earlier so that KDHE has time to put together the end of the year report and the end of the project report. We will consider extending the deadline of exercises on a case-by-case basis as long as the exercise event does not extend past the first week of May.

Question: Can the Ebola exercise count towards the annual exercise requirement as well?

Answer: Yes as long as it also meets the BP5 capability exercise requirements (i.e. include testing capability 5, 7, and 14. Capability 14 works well with Ebola exercises)

Item #4A: Working with ESF 8 organizations to revise the county BIA and submit to regional public health coordinators by April 30, 2017.

Question: What if no partners show up to our ESF 8 meeting when we review the BIA?

Answer: Submit documentation that includes the date of the meeting, the agenda, who and how partners were invited and who was present at the meeting with your quarterly reports. If you can prove that effort was made to invite ESF partners, you will be given credit.

Item #5:Update COOP plan and submit to KDHE by February 15.

Question: What if the COOP Plan is in KSPlanner/BOLD? Do we have to submit to KDHE or does KDHE have access to BOLD?

Answer:The COOP Plans will still need to be submitted to KDHE. We do not have access to the documents in BOLD.

Item #6: Inventory of preparedness funds entered into CRMCS by December 31.

Question: Does the inventory include both deployable and non-deployable items? What is the definition of deployable?

Answer: KDHE’s requirement to meet this deliverable is that all deployable equipment purchased with PHEP funding should be entered into CRMCS. It is up to each health department if other items are entered. Deployable means” items that can be used in the field in a disaster or emergency situation. Deployable equipment inventoried into CRMCS must either have a federal qualification or one of the state-level qualifications. Those qualifications can be found in the KS Equipment Qualification Category Definitions document in CRMCS resources.” (definition taken from a memo from David Marshall on September 8, 2016)

Question: What if I cannot get trained to use CRMCS before December 31 or training is later in the year and do not have time to enter items before December 31?

Answer: Our next webinar will be on the topic of CRMCS. David Marshall, KDHE, and Brian Rogers, KDEM, will be presenting on how to login and classify items into the CRMCS system. Brian Rogers can also be contacted to conduct additional training if needed. Brian Rogers can be reached by email at or by phone at (785) 274-1890 or (785) 207-5945. For inquiries regarding inventory, contact David Marshall at KDHE ()

Question: Is the timeframe for inventory of items purchased still 10 years?

Answer: Regulations from the Federal funders state that all deployable equipment (still in working order) and purchased with PHEP funds needs to be entered in CRMCS. KDHE recommends keeping the items in inventory for the entire project period (in this case 5 years), however, if the equipment is still in working order, there should be records available.

Question: Who is responsible for entering items into CRMCS?

Answer: If the local public health department purchased preparedness equipment with PHEP funds, it is the responsibility of the local public health department staff. Regional Coordinators that purchased equipment with PHEP funds that is to be used at the regional level must enter the information into CRMCS. If, however the regional coordinator has purchased equipment on behalf of a local health department, the regional coordinator can enter the information into CRMCS and must include who is the point of contact for the equipment and the location where the equipment is being stored.

Item #7D: Update 24/7 epidemiological contact information

Question: Do we need to share with KDHE Preparedness, KDHE Epi or both?

Answer: The 24/7 epidemiological contact information needs to only be shared with KDHE Epi. If you do not know how to contact them, you can submit the information to and we can forward the information.

Item #7E: Completion of ICS Training

Question: Can there be notifications of when the ICS 300 and 400 courses are available?

Answer: The KDHE Preparedness Training Coordinator will provide that information when it becomes available.

Item #7G: Signed shared resource agreements

Question: What is the definition of shared resource agreements?

Answer: Shared resource agreements are any Memorandum of Understand/Memorandum of Agreements with other health/medical entities to share equipment or services in the case of insufficient resources during an event.

Question: Is there a recommended list that health departments should have?

Answer: Shared resource agreements should be available for items/services that you might expect to need or make available during an emergency such as staff, vaccines, shippers, POD supplies, etc.

Item #7L: Maintain inventory tracking control system

Question: Is CRMCS the same as the inventory tracking control system?

Answer: No, these are separate systems. The inventory tracking control system described in this deliverable is referring to your agency’s internal system. The CRMCS is a federal system, however, in lieu of an internal system, all information can be entered into the CRMCS. Although, the only information required to be entered into CRMCS, is preparedness deployable items. (Please see the definition of deployable items under Item #6)

Item #7O: Provide POD location and other information to KDHE by December 30.

Question: By POD, do you mean Point of Dispensing or Point of Distribution?

Answer: We are referring to Point of Dispensing with regards to this deliverable.

Question: What information regarding PODs is needed and what is considered “other relevant information”?

Answer: The following is information we will want to collect regarding PODs:

Primary physical location & is there a MOU/MOA established? Yes or No
Secondary physical location & is there a MOU/MOA established? Yes or No
Point of Contact name and phone number of who can sign for the shipment
Is there storage identified? Yes or No
Is there security identified? Yes or No

KDHE will be providing a POD Information template for your use shortly.

General Questions

Question: What is HCCDA?

Answer: HCCDA is the acronym that stands for Healthcare Coalition Developmental Assessment

Question: What is the status of Catalyst?

Answer: Catalyst will become Grid 120 in January. Trainings will be scheduled and information will be sent out as courses become available. Work plans and the requirements for everyone to use Grid 120 will begin with the July 2017 grant period.