publishes the NIMS Implementation Plan for Hospitals and Healthcare, establishing a September 30, 2007 deadline for all hospitals and healthcare facilities to be "NIMS-compliant." 2007 – On January 31, 2007, President Bush issues HSPD-18, calling for the development and deployment of medical countermeasures against weapons of mass destruction. 2007 – On September 30, 2007, the NIMS Implementation Plan for Hospitals and Healthcare Facilities compliance deadline passes with fewer than nine percent of all United States hospitals fully compliant and fewer than half of hospitals and healthcare facilities having made substantial progress towards compliance. 2007 – On October 18, 2007, President Bush issues HSPD-21, outlining an augmented plan for public health and disaster medical preparedness. HSPD-21 specifically calls for the creation of the discipline of "disaster healthcare" using the accepted definition of "disaster medicine." HSPD-21 also calls on the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to use "economic incentives" including the Center for Medicare Services (CMS) to induce private medical organizations, hospitals and healthcare facilities to implement disaster healthcare programs and medical disaster preparedness programs. Establishment of the National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health (NCDMPH) with Founding Partners, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Veterans' Affairs, and Department of Transportation. Board certification Physicians who hold board certification in disaster medicine have demonstrated by written and simulator-based examination that through training and field experience, they have mastered the spectrum of knowledge and skills which defines the specialty of disaster medicine. As with all medical specialties, this body of knowledge and skills is contained in the core competencies document created and maintained by the American Board of Disaster Medicine and the American Academy of Disaster Medicine. As with all core competencies documents, the specific knowledge and skills required for certification are subject to constant refinement and evolution. This statement cannot be more true than for a specialty like disaster medicine where the nature of the threats faced, the responses undertaken, and the lessons learned become more complex with each event. References External links American Academy of Emergency Medicine American Board of Disaster Medicine CRIMEDIM - Research Center in Emergency and Disaster Medicine (University of Eastern Piedmont) Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc (SDMPH) The European Master in Disaster Medicine - EMDM European Council for Disaster Medicine - ECDM National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health (NCDMPH) Medicine Disaster