PREVENTION OF THE SPREAD OF INFECTIOUS AND CONTAGIOUS DISEASES.
These operations are conducted under two laws. One is the national quarantine act of 1893, already referred to, which contains practically the same provisions for interstate as for maritime quarantine. The other is the annual law passed by Congress appropriating an “epidemic fund” which contains a provision that it may be used in aid of State and local boards of health in the enforcement of their quarantine regulations, as well as those of the national service—to be used, however, only against certain specified epidemic diseases, viz., cholera, yellow fever, smallpox, typhus fever and bubonic plague.
Now, with these two laws in hand, and when the appearance of any of the above-named diseases in any State so require, the officers of the Public Health Service are at once upon the scene with the double object of seeing that the Treasury Interstate Quarantine Regulations are enforced by the State or local authorities and to offer aid, as authorized by law.
When aid is extended, the Government’s funds must be expended by its own officers, and the latter are therefore placed in charge and have the co-operation and assistance of the State or local authorities. They have, therefore, the support of the State and local laws and regulations, as well as those of the Federal Government. This is fortunate, since experience has shown the importance, in a Republic like ours, of local sympathy and support.
THE COLLECTION AND DISSEMINATION OF SANITARY INFORMATION.
The Public Health Bureau, through its Division of Sanitary Reports and Statistics, compiles and publishes each week a pamphlet called the Public Health Reports. It contains a statistical report from all cities in the United States of more than 10,000 inhabitants, and some others, giving the morbidity and mortality in each city with regard to twelve diseases and the total mortality from all diseases. It contains also a statement of the weekly mortality in some 120 foreign cities from thirteen communicable diseases. It gives special information concerning quarantinable diseases and sanitary measures in the United States and foreign countries. The foreign information is received through the United States consuls and service officers abroad.
Collective investigations are being made of the prevalence of pellagra, infantile paralysis and leprosy.
A compilation has been prepared of state laws bearing upon reporting diseases, with a view to increasing the collection of morbidity statistics and bringing about improved methods and greater uniformity in their collection.
CONDUCT OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH.
In the District of Columbia, in a commodious building, the Public Health Service has its hygienic laboratory, a research laboratory exclusively for public health investigations. It is conducted in four divisions, viz., bacteriology and pathology, chemistry, zoölogy and pharmacology. This organization brings under the same roof, and in intimate association, scientific workers in each of these several branches, interesting facts developed in one line of investigation being made freely known to the investigators in other lines of research.