The Mountain Area Healthcare Preparedness Coalition (MAHPC) includes over 80 healthcare agencies in the 18 westernmost counties (including EBCI) of North Carolina. The Coalition is comprised of regional healthcare partners including hospitals, EMS, public health, emergency management, public safety and other healthcare entities with the purpose of enhancing the ability of the region to be more resilient in a disaster. The coalition provides a forum for all partners who have a stake or interest in healthcare disaster preparedness, planning, response, or mitigation to work together to improve disaster resiliency.

MAHPC is also part of North Carolina’s State Medical Response System (SMRS) – a system of response partners including Emergency Medical Services, Emergency Management, Public Health, State Medical Assistance Teams (SMAT), and the Mountain Region Medical Reserve Corps (MRMRC). Over the past several years, in preparation for disastrous events, Coalition members have collaborated to train response personnel and build a robust cache of medical-response supplies and equipment.