Northeastern University awarded $17.5 million for infectious disease prediction center
New England Council member, Northeastern University has received a $17.5 million grant from the Center for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) to lead a research center designed to predict and prepare for future outbreaks of infectious diseases.
The “EPISTORM: Center for Advanced Epidemic Analytics and Predictive Modeling Technology” will provide data and analytics to assist healthcare professionals on the ground when responding to an infectious disease outbreak. Northeastern’s EPISTORM center is part of the CDC’s new outbreak response network, which consists of 13 total centers. In addition to Northeastern University, the center is made up of 10 academic and professional members from across the country, including New England Council member, Boston University. The initiative will be led by Alessandro Vespignani, director of Northeastern’s Network Science Institute who served on one of several groups to advise the White House on COVID-19 policies.
“To be an actor in this national endeavor is something that galvanizes all of us,” said Vespignani. “We are creating a system for the future. It has never happened for infectious diseases. It is not happening at this level elsewhere in the world.”
The New England Council would like to congratulate Northeastern University for its leadership in this national program.
Read more in the Boston Globe.