August 31, 2009, Washington, DC – The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions’ (ATIS) Network Reliability Steering Committee (NRSC) recently released a set of Pandemic Planning recommendations. This document includes a compilation of existing – as well as newly-developed – industry consensus best practices to ensure service provision, and business continuity in the event of a pandemic outbreak. The guidance includes 56 voluntary best practices that continue the U.S. communications industry’s nearly 20-year history of collaboration among experts to promote the health of the nation’s public networks. The Best Practices are available at: http://www.atis.org/nrsc/Docs/NRSC_Pandemic_Checklist_Final.pdf.

This work – launched in December of 2008 – was accelerated in response to the World Health Organization’s April 29, 2009, declaration of a Phase 5 Alert Level for the H1N1 virus, to ensure its completion prior to a potential outbreak. The NRSC’s approach was unique in that it systematically considered how individual elements of a pandemic can affect the intrinsic vulnerabilities in each of the eight components of the information and communications technology infrastructure. The Best Practices Subcommittee included experts from Alcatel-Lucent, AT&T, Cox, CenturyLink, Qwest, Sprint, T-Mobile, Telcordia and Verizon.

The NRSC also considered a pandemic’s larger, more widespread impact. Beyond the public communications network, a pandemic could affect connecting networks, such as Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) and enterprises. For example, the Committee considered protecting 911 call centers from incoming traffic overload, and avoiding the impairment of virtual workforces due to network congestion. In those cases, the NRSC provided the following recommendations:

• PSAP Overload Protection: Local governments should anticipate the possibility of high 911 call volumes, work with local media to inform the public not to call 911 for flu symptoms, and provide directions for where to seek appropriate medical help.
• Virtual Workforce Connectivity Protection: To accommodate the expected enlarged virtual workforces’ capacity demands, enterprises should preemptively prepare by increasing available bandwidth, and implementing policies for shared use of limited resources.

“The communications industry’s experts have again demonstrated an understanding of the vital role they – and their organizations – play in the safety and stability of society. Together, we have diligently developed and articulated countermeasures that can ameliorate the impact of a widespread health crisis,” said Karl Rauscher, Executive Director, Bell Labs Network Reliability & Security Office, Alcatel-Lucent and NRSC Best Practices Subcommittee Chair. “This is a perfect example of a timely and effective, industry-led, private-public partnership.”

“This work holistically addresses potential susceptibilities in the national communications critical infrastructure in the event of a pandemic outbreak,” said Robin B. Howard, Manager, Verizon Network Operations and Network Reliability Steering Committee Co-Chair. “This work exemplifies the NRSC’s commitment to ensuring the public communications network’s continued reliability and vitality.”

The communications industry's most up-to-date Best Practices can be found at: http://www.bell-labs.com/USA/NRICbestpractices/. The FCC also makes the industry’s Best Practices available at: https://www.fcc.gov/nors/outage/bestpractice/BestPractice.cfm.

About the NRSC
The NRSC strives to improve network reliability by providing timely consensus-based technical and operational expert guidance to all segments of the public communications industry. For more information, please visit: http://www.atis.org/nrsc.

About ATIS
ATIS is the leading technical planning and standards development organization committed to the rapid development of global, market-driven standards for the information, entertainment and communications industry. More than 250 companies actively formulate standards in ATIS’ 20 Committees, covering issues including: IPTV, Service Oriented Networks, Home Networking, Energy Efficiency, IP-Based and Wireless Technologies, Quality of Service, Billing and Operational Support. In addition, numerous Incubators, Focus and Exploratory Groups address emerging industry priorities including “Green”, IP Downloadable Security, Next Generation Carrier Interconnect, IPv6 and Convergence.

ATIS is the North American Organizational Partner for the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), a member and major U.S. contributor to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Radio and Telecommunications’ Sectors, and a member of the Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL). For more information, please visit www.atis.org.