Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

The federal agency that bears the responsibility to support and conduct health promotion, preparedness, and prevention activities in the United States with the objective of improving overall public health is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Begun in 1946, the CDC is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, and managed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Besides its headquarters in Atlanta, the CDC has facilities in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and in eight other facilities in the continental United States: Cincinnati, Ohio; Research Triangle Park, North Carolina; Anchorage, Alaska; Fort Collins, Colorado; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Morgantown, West Virginia; Washington, D.C.; and Spokane, Washington.

The CDC plays a chief role in executing and shaping U.S. global health policy. It is one of the three agencies ...