Health SecurityAll Countries Remain Dangerously Unprepared for Future Epidemic, Pandemic Threats

Despite important steps taken by countries to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, all countries—across all income levels—remain dangerously unprepared to meet future epidemic and pandemic threats, according to the new 2021 Global Health Security (GHS) Index.

The report, released by the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security at the Bloomberg School of Public Health, with research by Economist Impact, measured the capacities of 195 countries to prepare for epidemics and pandemics. The data demonstrate that all countries have insufficient sustained health capacities, leaving the world acutely vulnerable to future health emergencies, including those potentially more devastating than COVID-19. The average overall 2021 GHS Index score is 38.9 out of a possible score of 100. No country scored in the top tier of rankings and no country scored above 75.9.

“COVID-19 offers a devastating illustration of how poor pandemic preparedness and response can impact health and security at every level—local, national and global,” said NTI Co-Chair and CEO Ernest J. Moniz. “The stakes are high, and world leaders need to act. Biological risks are growing in frequency, and all countries need more investment in durable capabilities to address these risks.”

The GHS Index is designed to inform leaders of the foundational elements that are necessary to prepare their countries for future outbreaks and where they should prioritize planning and durable funding. It is not a direct predictor of performance in the face of a health emergency; as COVID-19 has demonstrated—contextual social, political, and cultural phenomena also impact how well a country responds to a biological event.

“Leaders now have a choice,” said Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “They can make dedicated, sustainable investments in the new capacities created during the COVID-19 response to prepare their countries for the long term, or they can fall back into the decades-long cycle of panic-and-neglect that will leave the world at grave risk for inevitable future public health threats.”

“One of the core principles of the GHS Index is that global health security is a collective responsibility,” said NTI Interim Vice President for Biological Policy and Programs Dr. Margaret A. Hamburg. “The Index can help leaders, health officials, and practitioners identify gaps and build sustained preparedness in their home countries and those in their regions.”