PulseNet Saves Lives and Money: A 20-year Success Story

PulseNet, a national network of public health laboratories, prevents an estimated 270,000 cases of food poisoning and saves half a billion dollars every year.

By preventing foodborne illness, PulseNet not only saves lives but also saves an estimated $500 million a year in medical costs and lost productivity. In comparison, the network costs public health agencies about $7 million a year to run.

PulseNet connects cases of foodborne illness by comparing DNA fingerprints of the foodborne bacteria and matching illnesses across the country that may be from the same source. Information about the bacteria making people sick is entered by labs across the country into a network database, which can be accessed by local and state health officials. By matching cases of illness and finding outbreaks, public health investigators can work quickly to find the source of the illness, recall contaminated food, and prevent more illnesses.

Since it started in 1996, PulseNet has revolutionized how foodborne disease outbreaks are detected and investigated. Before PulseNet, foodborne disease outbreaks often went undetected or were discovered only after they grew very large. Using PulseNet methods, scientists can now find outbreaks even if only a few people are sick and they live in different parts of the country.

Many products and food handling practices are safer today because of investigations that PulseNet initiated, including production changes in the food industry and new or improved guidance, policy and regulations.