NBACC's Scientific Research and Operational Posture During the 2020-2021 COVID-19 Pandemic

Introduction: The National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center (NBACC) is a national resource established to understand the scientific basis of the risk posed by biological threats, and to analyze evidentiary material from bioterror or biocrime events. Like many other U.S. research institutions, the emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and rapid development of the COVID-19 pandemic allowed only a few short weeks of preparations before infectious disease controls could be implemented. Due to the nature of its mission, the NBACC must be available on a 24/7 readiness posture to support bioforensic casework from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). It also serves to provide the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with key scientific data to assess the hazard from biological agents, especially in this instance to inform the national response to COVID-19. These factors caused the operational tempo to significantly increase. Methods: To accomplish our mission during a national emergency, laboratory staffing levels needed to be maintained at prepandemic levels. As a result, the Battelle National Biodefense Institute (BNBI) leadership took significant actions to prevent COVID-19 exposure and transmission within the workforce. These multiple actions included engineering changes to the facility, stockpiling of personal protective equipment and consumable products, educating the staff on the signs and symptoms of COVID-19, reducing the population of the nonlaboratory staff, and the completion of a comprehensive risk assessment to quantify the risk of COVID-19 infection for all NBACC staff. Conclusion: These early actions, used in tandem, were successful in maintaining a healthy and stable workforce so that BNBI's research objectives could be met.