Epidemic Intelligence Service

The Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) is a two-year applied epidemiology training program administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Based in Atlanta, Georgia, participants — formally called EIS officers and colloquially known as "disease detectives" — spend most of their term on field assignments investigating disease outbreaks and public health emergencies at CDC operational units or at state and local health departments across the country.

Alexander Langmuir of the United States Public Health Service proposed the program on March 30, 1951, citing the need for trained field epidemiologists to detect and respond to biological warfare threats during the Korean War. The EIS was formally organized that September; since its founding, more than 4,100 officers have been trained to investigate outbreaks and other public health emergencies in the United States and internationally.

The EIS served as the model for the global network of Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETPs), which CDC has helped establish in numerous countries. The program is a common pathway into the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and holds an annual conference in Atlanta at which the Alexander D. Langmuir Prize is awarded for the best scientific publication by a current or recent officer. In February 2025, the Trump administration directed layoffs at the CDC that included first-year EIS officers; the program was not eliminated in that round of cuts. Langmuir argued that the agency could identify appropriate defense measures against biological warfare germs, develop new detection methods, and train laboratory workers to rapidly recognize biological warfare germs.

The Epidemic Intelligence Service was organized on September 26, 1951, with the purpose of investigating disease outbreaks that are beyond the control of state and local health departments, enforcing interstate quarantine regulations, and providing epidemic aid at the request of state health agencies. The Epidemic Intelligence Service's first staff members were 21 medical officers of the Public Health Service.

Structure and operations

thumb|left|260px|alt=Three men in suits examining large architectural blueprints on a table|Tom Chin, Melvin Goodwin, and Alexander Langmuir reviewing CDC blueprints, 1962

The EIS is operated by the CDC's Center for Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services (CSELS), in the Office of Public Health Scientific Services (OPHSS).

Program participants, known colloquially as "disease detectives", are formally called "EIS officers" or "EIS fellows" by the CDC. Since 1951, the program has trained more than 4,100 officers, who have been involved in domestic and international response efforts including Legionnaires' disease, Ebola, the 2001 anthrax attacks, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other outbreaks and public health emergencies.

EIS officers begin their fellowship with a one-month training program at CDC headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia; however, most of the two-year term consists of field-based training and service. The EIS is a common recruiting pathway into the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.

The EIS is the prototype for Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETP), which operate in numerous countries with technical assistance provided by the CDC. However, attempts to establish FETPs in Indonesia, Hungary, Ivory Coast, and within the World Health Organization have failed due to insufficient long-term support.

History of responses

Since its founding, EIS officers have investigated outbreaks and public health emergencies spanning every decade of the program's operation.

1950s: Polio, lead poisoning, and Asian influenza
1960s: Cancer clusters and smallpox eradication
1970s: Legionnaires' disease, Ebola, and Reye syndrome
1980s: Toxic shock syndrome, birth defects, and HIV/AIDS
1990s: Tobacco-related illness, West Nile virus, and contaminated water
2000s: The 2001 anthrax attacks, E. coli O157:H7, SARS, H1N1, and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
2010s: Cholera in Haiti, obesity, fungal meningitis, Ebola in West Africa, and Zika virus
2020s: COVID-19 pandemic, the mpox outbreak, H5N1 avian influenza, and measles resurgence

EIS conference

EIS officers attend an annual conference in Atlanta, Georgia, to present components of their work from the preceding year. The conference has typically been held at an Atlanta hotel, open to former CDC employees and members of the public. In April 2026, organizers were denied the budget to hold the 75th annual conference at a hotel; the event was instead held on the CDC's main campus, which requires security clearance for entry, effectively closing it to public attendance.

A complete list of Langmuir Prize winners is included below:

{| class="wikitable"

! Year

! Article title

! Publication

! Author(s)

! 1966

| Complications of Smallpox Vaccination: I. National Survey in the United States, 1963.

| N Engl J Med 1967;276:125–32.

| J.M. Neff, J.M. Lane, J.H. Pert, R. Moore, J.D. Millar, D.A. Henderson

! 1967

| An Outbreak of Neuromyasthenia in a Kentucky Factory—The Possible Role of a Brief Exposure to Organic Mercury.

| Am J Epidemiol 1967;86:756–64.

| G. Miller, R. Chamberlin, W.M. McCormack

! 1968

| Salmonellosis from Chicken Prepared in Commercial Rotisseries: Report of an Outbreak.

| Am J Epidemiol 1969;90:429–37.

| S.B. Werner, J. Allard, E.A. Ager

! 1969

| Outbreak of Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever in Spokane County, Washington.

| JAMA 1969;210:1045–50.

| R.S. Thompson, W. Burgdorfer, R. Russell, B.J. Francis

! 1970

| Tularemia Epidemic: Vermont, 1968—Forty-Seven Cases Linked to Contact with Muskrats.

| N Engl J Med 1969;280:1253–60.

| L.S. Young, D.S. Bicknell, B.G. Archer, et al.

! 1971

| Tomato Juice-Associated Gastroenteritis, Washington and Oregon, 1969.

| Am J Epidemiol 1972;96:219–26.

| W.H. Barker Jr., V. Runte

! 1972

| Salmonella Septicemia from Platelet Transfusions: Study of an Outbreak Traced to a Hematogenous Carrier of Salmonella cholerae-suis.

| Ann Intern Med 1973;78: 633–41.

| F.S. Rhame, R.K. Root, J.D. MacLowry, T.A. Dadisman, J.V. Bennett

! 1973

| Outbreak of Typhoid Fever in Trinidad in 1971 Traced to a Commercial Ice Cream Product.

| Am J Epidemiol 1974;100:150–7.

| A. Taylor Jr., A. Santiago, A.Gonzales-Cortes, E.J. Gangarosa

! 1974

| Oyster-Associated Hepatitis: Failure of Shellfish Certification Programs To Prevent Outbreaks.

| JAMA 1975;233:1065–8.

| B.L. Portnoy, P.A. Mackowiak, C.T. Caraway, J.A. Walker, T.W. McKinley, C.A. Klein Jr.

! 1975

| Staphylococcal Food Poisoning Aboard a Commercial Aircraft.

| Lancet 1975;2:595–9.

| M.S. Eisenberg, K. Gaarslev, W. Brown, M. Horwitz, D. Hill

! 1976

| Nursery Outbreak of Peritonitis with Pneumoperitoneum Probably Caused by Thermometer-Induced Rectal Perforation.

| Am J Epidemiol 1976;104:632–44.

| M.A. Horwitz, J.V. Bennett

! 1977

| Epidemic Yersinia enterocolitica Infection due to Contaminated Chocolate Milk.

| N Engl J Med 1978;298:76–9.

| R.E. Black, R.J. Jackson, T. Tsai, et al.

! 1978

| Measles Vaccine Efficacy in Children Previously Vaccinated at 12 Months of Age.

| Pediatrics 1978;62: 955–60.

| J.S. Marks, T.J. Halpin, W.A. Orenstein

! 1979

| An Outbreak of Legionnaires' Disease Associated with a Contaminated Air-Conditioning Cooling Tower.

| N Engl J Med 1980;302:365–70.

| T.J. Dondero Jr., R.C. Rendtorff, G.F. Mallison, et al.

! 1979

| Risk of Vascular Disease in Women: Smoking, Oral Contraceptives, Noncontraceptive Estrogens, and Other Factors.

| JAMA 1979;242:1150–4.

| D.B. Petitti, J.Wingerd, J. Pellegrin, et al.

! 1980

| Injuries from the Wichita Falls Tornado: Implications for Prevention.

| Science 1980;207:734–8.

| R.I. Glass, R.B. Craven, D.J. Bregman, et al.

! 1981

| Respiratory Irritation due to Carpet Shampoo: Two Outbreaks.

| Environ Int 1982;8:337–41.

| K. Kreiss, M.G. Gonzalez, K.L. Conright, A.R. Scheere

! 1981

| Toxic-Shock Syndrome in Menstruating Women: Association with Tampon Use and Staphylococcus aureus and Clinical Features in 52 Cases.

| N Engl J Med 1980;303:1436–42.

| K.N. Shands, G.P. Schmid, B.B. Dan, et al.

! 1982

| Risk Factors for Heatstroke: A Case-Control Study.

| JAMA 1982;247:3332–6.

| E.M. Kilbourne, K. Choi, T.S. Jones, S.B. Thacker

! 1983

| Epidemic Listeriosis — Evidence for Transmission by Food.

| N Engl J Med 1983;308:203–6.

| W.F. Schlech III, P.M. Lavigne, R.A. Bortolussi, et al.

! 1984

| Unexplained Deaths in a Children's Hospital: An Epidemiologic Assessment.

| N Engl J Med 1985;313: 211–6.

| J.W. Buehler, L.F. Smith, E.M. Wallace, C.W. Heath, R. Kusiak, J.L. Herndon.

! 1984

| Medication Errors with Inhalant Epinephrine Mimicking an Epidemic of Neonatal Sepsis.

| N Engl J Med 1984;310:166–70.

| S.L. Solomon, E.M. Wallace, E.L. Ford-Jones, et al.

! 1985

| The Use and Efficacy of Child-Restraint Devices: The Tennessee Experience, 1982 and 1983.

| JAMA 1984;252:2571–5.

| M.D. Decker, M.J. Dewey, R.H. Hutcheson Jr., W.S. Schaffner

! 1986

| The Role of Parvovirus B19 in Aplastic Crisis and Erythema Infectiosum (Fifth Disease).

| J Infect Dis 1986;154:383–93.

| T.L. Chorba, P. Coccia, R.C. Holman, et al.

! 1987

| Oral Contraceptives and Cervical Cancer Risk in Costa Rica: Detection Bias or Causal Association?

| JAMA 1988;259:59–64.

| K.L. Irwin, L. Rosero-Bixby, M.W. Oberle, et al.

! 1988

| A Day-Care–Based Case-Control Efficacy Study of Haemophilus influenzae B Polysaccharide Vaccine.

| JAMA 1988;260:1413–8.

| L.H. Harrison, C. Broome, A.W. Hightower, et al.

! 1989

| Group A Meningococcal Carriage in Travelers Returning from Saudi Arabia.

| JAMA 1988;260:2686–9.

| P.S. Moore, L.H. Harrison, E.E. Telzak, G.W. Ajello, C.V. Broome

! 1989

| Transmission of Plasmodium vivax Malaria in San Diego County, California, 1986.

| Am J Trop Med Hyg 1990;42:3–9.

| Y.A. Maldonado, B.L. Nahlen, R.R. Roberta, et al.

! 1990

| An Outbreak of Surgical Wound Infections due to Group A Streptococcus Carried on the Scalp.

| N Engl J Med 1990;323:968–72.

| T.D. Mastro, T.A. Farley, J.A. Elliott, et al.

! 1991

| An Investigation of the Cause of the Eosinophilia–Myalgia Syndrome Associated with Tryptophan Use.

| N Engl J Med 1990;323:357–65.

| E.A. Belongia, C.W. Hedberg, G.J. Gleich, et al.

! 1992

| An Outbreak of Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Among Hospitalized Patients with the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome.

| N Engl J Med 1992;326:1514–21.

| B.R. Edlin, J.I. Tokars, M.H. Grieco, et al.

! 1993

| Comparison of Prevention Strategies for Neonatal Group B Streptococcal Infection: A Population-Based Economic Analysis.

| JAMA 1993;270:1442–8.

| J.C. Mohle-Boetani, A. Schuchat, B.D. Plikaytis, J.D. Smith, C.V. Broome

! 1993

| Retrospective Study of the Impact of Lead-Based Hazard Remediation on Children's Blood Lead Levels in St. Louis, Missouri.

| Am J Epidemiol 1994;139:1016–26.

| C. Staes, T. Matte, C.B. Copley, D. Flanders, S. Binder

! 1994

| A Massive Outbreak in Milwaukee of Cryptosporidium Infection Transmitted Through the Public Water Supply.

| N Engl J Med 1994;331:161–7.

| W.R. Mac Kenzie, N.J. Hoxie, M.E. Proctor, et al.

! 1995

| A Multistate Outbreak of Escherichia coli 0157:H7-Associated Bloody Diarrhea and Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome from Hamburgers: The Washington Experience.

| JAMA 1994;272:1349–53.

| B.P. Bell, M. Goldoft, P.M. Griffin, et al.

! 1996

| A Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis Infections Associated with Consumption of Schwan's Ice Cream.

| N Engl J Med 1996;334:1281–6

| T.W. Hennessy, C.W. Hedberg, L. Slutsker, et al.

! 1996

| Passenger to Passenger Transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Aboard Commercial Aircraft During Transoceanic Travel.

| N Engl J Med 1996;334:993–8.

| T.A. Kenyon, S.E. Valway, W.W. Ihle, I.M. Onorato

! 1997

| Epidemic Meningococcal Disease and Tobacco Smoke: A Risk Factor Study in the Pacific Northwest.

| Pediatr Infect Dis J 1997;16:979–83.

| M.A. Fisher, K. Hedberg, P. Cardosi, et al.

! 1998

| Suicide After Natural Disasters.

| N Engl J Med 1998;338:373–8.

| E.G. Krug, M. Kresnow, J.P. Peddicord, et al.

! 1999

| Legalized Physician-Assisted Suicide in Oregon—The First Year's Experience.

| N Engl J Med 1999;340:577–83.

| A.E. Chin, K. Hedberg, G.K. Higginson, D.W. Fleming

! 2000

| Infantile Hypertrophic Pyloric Stenosis After Pertussis Prophylaxis with Erythromycin: A Case Review and Cohort Study.

| Lancet 1999;354:2101–5.

| M.A. Honein, L.J. Paulozzi, I.M. Himelright, et al.

! 2001

| Salmonella Typhimurium Infections Transmitted by Chlorine-Pretreated Clover Sprout Seeds.

| Am J Epidemiol 2001;154:1020–8.

| J.T. Brooks, S. Rowe, P. Shillam, et al.

! 2002

| Serratia liquefaciens Bloodstream Infections from Contamination of Epoetin Alfa at a Hemodialysis Center.

| N Engl J Med 2001;344:1491–7.

| L.A. Grohskopf, V.R. Roth, D.R. Feikin, et al.

! 2003

| Transmission of West Nile Virus from an Organ Donor to Four Transplant Recipients.

| N Engl J Med 2003;348:2196–203.

| M. Iwamoto, D.B. Jernigan, A. Guasch, et al., the West Nile Virus in Transplant Recipients Investigation Team

! 2004

| Risk of Bacterial Meningitis in Children with Cochlear Implants.

| N Engl J Med 2003;349:435–45.

| J. Reefhuis, M.A. Honein, C.G. Whitney, et al.

! 2005

| Changes in Invasive Pneumococcal Disease Among HIV-Infected Adults Living in the Era of Childhood Pneumococcal Immunization.

| Ann Intern Med 2006;144:1–9.

| B.L. Flannery, R.T. Heffernan, L.H. Harrison, et al.

! 2006

| Case-Control Study of an Acute Aflatoxicosis Outbreak, Kenya, 2004.

| Environ Health Perspect 2005;113:1779–83.

| E. Azziz-Baumgartner, K.Y. Lindblade, K. Gieseker, et al., and the Aflatoxin Investigative Group

! 2007

| Methamphetamine Use Is Independently Associated with Risky Sexual Behaviors and Adolescent Pregnancy.

| J Sch Health 2008;78:641–8.

| L.B. Zapata, S.D Hillis, P.M. Marchbanks, K.M. Curtis, R. Lowry

! 2008

| Characteristics of Perpetrators in Homicide-Followed-by-Suicide Incidents: National Violent Death Reporting System—17 US States, 2003–2005.

| Am J Epidemiol 2008;168:1056–64.

| J. Logan, H.A. Hill, A.E. Crosby, D.L. Karch, J.D. Barnes, K.M. Lubell

! 2009

| Epidemiologic Investigation of Immune-Mediated Polyradiculoneuropathy Among Abattoir Workers Exposed to Porcine Brain.

| PLoS ONE 2009;5:e9782.

| S.M. Holzbauer, A.S. DeVries, J.J. Sejvar, et al.

! 2010

| Increasing Compliance with Mass Drug Administration Programs for Lymphatic Filariasis in Orissa, India, 2009: Impact of an Education and a Lymphedema Management Program.

| PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2010;4:e728.

| P.T. Cantey, J. Rout, G. Rao, J. Williamson, L.M. Fox

! 2011

| Effect of Rotavirus Vaccine on Healthcare Utilization for Diarrhea in US Children.

| N Engl J Med 2011;365;12:1108–17.

| J. Cortes, A. Curns, J. Tate, M. Cortese, M. Patel, F. Zhou, U. Parashar

! 2012

| Multistate Outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 Infections Associated with In-Store Sampling of a Raw-Milk Gouda Cheese, 2010.

| J Food Prot. 2012;75(10):1759–65.

| J. McCollum, N. Williams, S. W. Beam, et al.

! 2013

| Necrotizing Cutaneous Mucormycosis After the Tornado in Joplin, Missouri, in 2011.

| N Engl J Med 2012;367;2214–25.

| R. Fanfair, K. Benedict, J. Bos, et al.

! 2014

| Raccoon Rabies Virus Variant Transmission Through Solid Organ Transplantation.

| JAMA 2013;310:398–407.

| N.M. Vora, S.V. Basavaraju, KA Feldman, et al.

! 2015

| New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase-producing carbapenem-resistant E. coli associated with exposure to duodenoscopes.

| JAMA. 2014;312(14):1447–1455.

| L. Epstein, J. Hunter, M.A. Arwaddy, et al.

! 2016

| Exposure to Advertisements and Electronic Cigarette Use among U.S. Middle and High School Students.

| Pediatrics 2016;137(5):e20154155.

| T. Singh, I.T. Agaku, R.A. Arrazola, K.L. Marynak, L.J. Neff, I.T. Rolle, B.A. King

! 2017

| Geospatial analysis of household spread of Ebola virus in a quarantined village – Sierra Leone, 2014

| Epidemiol Infect 2017;145(14):2921–2929.

| B. L. Gleason, S. Foster, G. E. Wilt, et al.

! 2018

| Educational Disabilities Among Children Born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome.

| Pediatrics 2018;142(3).

| M.A. Fill, A.M. Miller, R.H. Wilkinson

! 2019

| Homelessness and Hepatitis A — San Diego County, 2016–2018.

| Clin Infect Dis 2020;71(1):14–21.

| C.M. Peak, S.S. Stous, J.M. Healy, et al.

! 2020

| Factors Associated with Candida auris Colonization and Transmission in Skilled Nursing Facilities with Ventilator Units, New York, 2016–2018.

| Clin Infect Dis 2021;72(11):e753–e760.

| J. Rossow, B. Ostrowsky, E. Adams, et al.

! 2021

| Presymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 Infections and Transmission in a Skilled Nursing Facility.

| N Engl J Med. 2020;382(22):2081–2090.

| M.M. Arons, K.M. Hatfield, S.C. Reddy, et al.

! 2022

| Multistate Outbreak of Spinal and Disseminated Tuberculosis Caused by Surgical Implantation of a Bone Allograft Product.

| N. Schwartz, A. Hernandez-Romieu

! 2022

| Association Between 3 Doses of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine and Symptomatic Infection Caused by the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron and Delta Variants.

| JAMA. 2022 Feb 15;327(7):639-651.

| E.K. Accorsi, A. Britton, Fleming-Dutra KE, et al.

! 2023

| School District Prevention Policies and Risk of COVID-19 Among In-Person K—12 Educators, Wisconsin, 2021.

| Am J Public Health 2022;112(12):1791-1799.

| Peter M. DeJonge, Ian W. Pray, Ronald Gangnon, et al.

! 2024

| Extensively drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa outbreak associated with artificial tears.

| Marissa Grossman

! 2024

| Community health impacts after a jet fuel leak contaminated a drinking water system: Oahu, Hawaii, November 2021.

| Shanna Miko

! 2025

| Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder diagnosis, treatment, and telehealth use in adults — National Center for Health Statistics Rapid Surveys System, United States, October–November 2023.

| Brooke Staley

! 2025

| Measles Outbreak Associated with a Migrant Shelter — Chicago, Illinois, February–May 2024.

| Kim Gressick, Amy Nham

2025 federal workforce reductions

On February 14, 2025, the Trump administration announced mass layoffs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as part of broader federal workforce reductions directed by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The cuts affected approximately 10 percent of the CDC's workforce of roughly 13,000 employees. First-year EIS officers were among those notified of termination; CDC employees told reporters that the EIS officer corps was directly affected, with all those in the first year of service laid off.

In the days following the initial announcements, termination notices affecting EIS officers were not finalized. By February 17, EIS fellows who had been told they would be terminated had not received formal letters, and current CDC staff remained uncertain about the program's status. The EIS program was not eliminated in the February 2025 round of cuts. As of April 2026, the EIS continued to deploy officers to investigate outbreaks including invasive streptococcal disease in Hawaii, diphtheria in Micronesia, and drug overdoses in Arizona. EIS chief Dr. Eric Pevzner said the program was "still doing everything that we've always done," while noting that additional funding would allow it to expand: "Would I like more money to hire more officers? Of course. If Congress wants to write me a larger check, I'll take it." Separately, CDC grant funding to state and local health departments slowed significantly through mid-2025, with some states reporting delays sufficient to force layoffs of public health staff who depended on those funds.

In popular culture

In the 2011 film Contagion, the character Doctor Erin Mears (portrayed by Kate Winslet) is a physician and investigator with the Epidemic Intelligence Service who was tasked by the CDC to discover the origin of a highly contagious and deadly virus known as MEV-1 which was rapidly spreading throughout the world following initial outbreaks in Kowloon, Hong Kong and Minneapolis, Minnesota.

References

External links

Epidemic Intelligence Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
EIS History (PDF), CDC