Public Health & Disasters Conference 2026

The Annual Public Health & Disasters Conference is hosted by the Rocky Mountains & High Plains Center for Emergency Public Health at the University of Utah's Division of Public Health, in collaboration with the Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and the Salt Lake County Health Department. Now in its newest chapter with the Center (since 2024), the conference builds on a long tradition---first stewarded by the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Center for Public Health & Disasters and then by the Office for Humanitarian Leadership and Environmental Health (OHLEH, 2014--2023). Public Health & Disasters is a multidisciplinary, national gathering that brings together academia, public health, community preparedness, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), clinical care, emergency response, policymakers across government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the media. Its purpose is to exchange practical ideas that strengthen local emergency public health preparedness and to foster the collaboration and coordination essential for effective, efficient response and recovery.