In September 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awarded Abt Global a five-year, $51.6 million contract to establish the research infrastructure necessary for, and to conduct, epidemiologic studies of novel influenza virus infections, including H7N9 Influenza, and the evaluation of antiviral and vaccine effectiveness. Abt Global is planning and conducting these studies in different settings and populations, including inpatient, outpatient, communities, pregnant women and infants.

The Abt team is working toward the following objectives:

• Identifying lessons learned from previous projects conducted during the last pandemic;
• Developing detailed plans for meeting the common and specific study objectives for each setting and population;
• Developing study protocols for each project domain;
• Identifying and secure local study sites, and;
• Developing an integrated plan that includes scenarios for responding to a novel influenza virus or other respiratory pathogen that can be customized and refreshed annually for pandemic readiness.