All you need to know about Strategic National Stockpile. In times of crisis
By its own definition, the SNS contains “the supplies, medicines, and devices for lifesaving care” that could be deployed in the event of a public health emergency, natural disaster, or terrorist attack. But the SNS isn’t just one massive storeroom of medical supplies; its contents are actually split between twelve secret locations around the country. Designed to look like a generic commercial warehouse, each facility, according to the Washington Post, is roughly the size of two Super Walmarts, as tall as five stories-high, and guarded 24 hours a day by armed personnel.
But while the whereabouts of these warehouses is a well-kept secret, their history, contents, and use are not.
What’s Actually Inside the Strategic National Stockpile?
In addition to personal protective equipment like masks, gloves, and gowns, the SNS contains other things you’d expect, such as pharmaceuticals, ventilators, and, of course, vaccines. But the SNS also manages a stock of specialized items ready to deploy during a humanitarian crisis.
For instance, the SNS contains federal medical stations, or everything a local government would need to turn a building into a fully-equipped medical center with enough beds, drugs, and equipment to care for 50 to 250 patients for up to three days.
Additionally, the SNS maintains CHEMPACKs, or “containers of nerve agent antidotes placed in secure locations in local jurisdictions around the country to allow rapid response to a chemical incident.” These medicines, according to the SNS, can treat the symptoms of exposure, even when the chemical agent is unknown. Because these types of drugs would be needed immediately, the SNS actually stores 1,960 containers of CHEMPACKs in 1,340 locations around the country, many stored in hospitals or fire stations. More than 90 percent of the U.S. population lives within one hour of a CHEMPACK location.
The SNS also keeps “12-hour push packages,” about 50 tons of materials to be used in the early hours of a crisis. Within 12 hours of a request, the U.S. Marshals Service can deliver these packages (by unmarked airplane or truck), which contain antibiotics, vaccines, syringes, and oxygen tubing, among other triage equipment.
When Has the US Tapped the Strategic National Stockpile?
In the last decade, the SNS has been used to respond to a number of small-scale emergencies and in 14 major crises, including 12 hurricanes. In 2001, staff at the Strategic National Stockpile deployed medicine and supplies to New York City within seven hours of the attack on the World Trade Center. During the H1N1 “swine flu” outbreak, the SNS shipped a quarter of its influenza antiviral medicine to 62 locations in one week.
Most recently, the SNS played a vital role in responding to the coronavirus pandemic, shipping more than 27,533 tons of cargo around the country, including mixing kits to support 1.32 billion doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. It has also supplied medical supplies and equipment to public health teams serving unaccompanied minors at the U.S./Mexico border.
How Is the Strategic National Stockpile Maintained?
Just like a home medicine cabinet, the SNS must be restocked and inventoried on a continual basis. To keep track of and replace expired drugs and medical equipment, the SNS partners with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for regular stability testing to determine if products are still suitable for use. This generally allows the SNS to extend the expiration date on products by up to 24 months.
The group of agencies that decide what goes in the SNS include the CDC, the FDA, the National Institutes for Health, as well as the Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security, and Agriculture.
