Travel and Health
Think Travel History
When evaluating a patient, clinicians should Think Travel History and consider the patient's domestic and foreign travel history.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Travelers' Health website lists common and emerging disease issues for all countries. The CDC organizes its Travel Health Notices from Level 1 to Level 4. The current notices are listed in the tabs below.
The United States, Canada and Mexico will host the FIFA World Cup in June and July of 2026. This event is expected to bring travelers from not only the qualifying countries, but all over the world. As such, resources are provided on this page to help clinicians when evaluating a patient's travel history
FIFA 26 Health Toolkit
Reporting Diseases to Public Health and the Houston Health Department
Suspected and confirmed reports of notifiable conditions in Texas should be reported to public health agencies. The list of conditions is set by the Texas Department of State Health Services and can be accessed directly here.
In addition, any outbreaks, exotic or newly recognized diseases, or unusual group expressions of disease should be reported to public health agencies. This includes reporting before receipt of lab results or confirmation of diagnosis. Health care providers can report by calling the Houston Health Department at 832-393-5080 and selecting the option for the epidemiologist on call. If you are unable to connect with a live person, we may be responding to another report; leave your name, contact information, and the reason for your call and someone will reach back out to you. Do not put protected health information in a voicemail.
Information to contact public health agencies across the greater Houston region can be found here.
Several Texas laws (Health & Safety Code, Chapters 81, 84, and 87) require specific information regarding notifiable conditions be provided to the public health agencies, including the Houston Health Department, Harris County Public Health, and the Texas Department of State Health Services. Health care providers, hospitals, laboratories, schools, and others are required to report patients who are suspected of having a notifiable condition (Chapter 97, Title 25, Texas Administrative Code).
The Texas Notifiable Conditions table can be accessed directly here.
Additional information on disease reporting in Texas can be found here.
Additional information on disease reporting at the Houston Health Department can be found here.
Testing at HHD
Disease Testing at the HHD's Laboratory
Houston Health Department (HHD) Bureau of Laboratory Services serves as a regional reference laboratory in the Texas Public Health Region 6/5 South and provides laboratory testing services to the 17 surrounding counties. The laboratory is a member of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Laboratory Response Network (LRN). Please refer to Specimen Submission Guidelines for HHD laboratory current testing capabilities on the Laboratory Services website. The website also has other information available like Test Request Forms, etc.
If you have testing needs for the following emerging and re-emerging diseases within HHD laboratory testing capabilities, please always contact your jurisdictional health department epidemiologists first. Epidemiologists will conduct an investigation to determine if testing is warranted before an arrangement can be made for testing.
- Measles
- Mpox
- Avian Influenza
- BioFire Global Fever Special Pathogens Panel:
| Type | Disease | Pathogen |
| Bacterial | Anthrax | Bacillus anthracis |
| Leptospirosis | Leptospira spp. | |
| Plague | Yersinia pestis | |
| Tularemia | Francisella tularensis | |
| Viral | Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic Fever | Crirnean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus |
| Chikungunya fever | Chikungunya virus | |
| Dengue fever | Dengue virus (serotypes 1,2. 3 and 4) | |
| Lassa fever | Lassa virus | |
| Ebola virus disease | Ebolavirus spp. (Bundlbugyo, Reston, Sudan, Tai Forest. zaire | |
| Marburg virus disease | Marburgvirus | |
| West Nile fever | West Nile virus | |
| Yellow fever | Yellow fever virus | |
| Protozoan | Malaria | hastnodium spp. |
| Plasmodium falciparum | ||
| Plasmodium vivax/ovale | ||
| Visceral Leishrnaniasis | Leishmania spp. includingdonovani and L. infantum |
If a test is not within HHD Laboratory testing capabilities, you can check Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Laboratory Tests for Diseases and Agents and find out if the test is available at state laboratory.
Contacts for Houston Area Health Departments are listed below. If you are not sure which jurisdictional health department you belong to, you can contact Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Health Service Region (HSR) 6/5 South at 713-767-3000.
Houston Area Health Departments:
| Harris County Public Health Telephone: (832) 927-7575 Fax: (713) 439-6306 After Hours: (713) 755-5050 http://publichealth.harriscountytx.gov/ Houston Health Department Telephone: (832) 393-5080 (24 hr #) Fax: (832) 393-5232 www.houstontx.gov/health/index.html Brazoria County Health Department Telephone: (979) 864-1166 Fax: (979) 864-3694 After Hours: (979) 583-1979 https://www.brazoriacountytx.gov/departments/health-department/infectious-diseases Chambers County Health Department Telephone: (409) 267-2731 Fax: (409) 267-4276 After Hours: (409) 267-9862 www.ccph.org |
Fort Bend County Health and Human Services Telephone: (346) 481-6500 Fax: (832) 471-1817 After Hours: (832)-612-7761 https://www.fbchhs.org/ Galveston County Health District Telephone: (409) 938-2208 Fax: (409) 938-2399 After Hours: (409) 220-1523 www.gchd.org Montgomery County Public Health Department Telephone: (936) 523-5026 Fax: (936) 539-9272 After Hours: (888) 825-9754 https://mcphd-tx.org Texas Department of State Health Services Health Service Region 6/5 South Telephone: (713) 767-3000 Fax: (713) 767-3006 After Hours: (800) 270-3128 www.dshs.state.tx.us/region6-5/default.shtm |
General Infection Prevention and Control
- Break the Chain of Infection (PDF) - APIC
- Identify, Isolate, Inform Approach for High Consequence Infectious Diseases – MyPACT
- Infection Control Basics: Standard Precautions - CDC
- Infection Control Basics: Transmission-Based Precautions – CDC
- Healthcare Associated Infections Educational Resources - HHD
Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Infection Prevention and Control
- Ambulance Infection Control: Wrap Installation Video - UNMC
- Ambulance Infection Control: Wrap Removal and Decontamination Video - UNMC
- EMS Biosafety: Identify, Isolate and Inform Flyer (PDF) - NETC
- EMS Biosafety Transport for Operators Online Course - NETEC
- EMS Infectious Disease Playbook (PDF) - ASPR
- EMS Special Pathogens Operational Readiness Self-Assessment - NETEC
Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (VHF)
- Identify, Isolate, Inform – Texas DSHS
- Texas Ebola Testing Process – Texas DSHS
- Collection Checklist (Partner Method): Collection & Transport of Specimens Suspected To Contain Special Pathogens - NETEC
- Special Pathogen Readiness Tracer – NETEC
- Infection Prevention and Control for Patients Suspected or Confirmed to have Selected Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (VHF) - CDC
- VHF Preparedness Checklist - NETEC
- VHF PPE Matrix - NETEC
APIC - Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology
ASPR - Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response
CDC – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
HHD – Houston Health Department
MyPACT – Infection Prevention and Control Tools supported through CDC’s Project Firstline
NETEC – National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center
Texas DSHS – Texas Department of State Health Services
UNMC – University of Nebraska Medical Center
FIFA Disease Profiles
- All Disease Profiles
- MEASLES
- CHIKUNGUNYA
- EBOLA
- DENGUE
- DIPHTHERIA
- HANTAVIRUS
- HEPATITIS A
- MENINGOCOCCAL DISEASE
- Monkeypox/MPOX
- PERTUSSIS
- POLIO
- SHIGELLA
- TUBERCULOSIS
- TYPHOID FEVER
- VIRAL HEMORRHAGIC FEVER
- ZIKA
Subscribe to the Houston Area Health Alert Network (HAN)
- Subscribe Here
- Scan Below
CDC Travel Health Notice Levels
CDC uses Travel Health Notices to inform travelers about global health risks during outbreaks, special events, or natural disasters, and to provide guidance on protective actions to prevent infection or other health effects.
- Meningococcal Disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Yellow Fever in Venezuela
- Chikungunya in Mayotte
- Global Polio
- Chikungunya in Suriname
- Chikungunya in Bolivia
- Chikungunya in Seychelles
- Clade II Monkeypox in Ghana and Liberia
- Yellow Fever in Colombia
- Diphtheria in Guinea
- Diphtheria in Nigeria
Currently there are no Travel Health Notices at this level.
Currently there are no Travel Health Notices at this level.
FIFA Watch: Report Suspicious Activity
If you see something that doesn't seem right, whether it involves safety, security, or public health you can quickly share the information by calling iWatch Texas (State): 844-643-2251 or report to website https://report.iwatchtx.org/iwatchtexas/ both are monitored 24/7
For activities related to the greater Houston area: Ready Houston: 1-855-492-8244 or https://www.readyhoustontx.gov/suspicious-activity/make-a-report/(Houston’s numbers and sites are not monitored 24/7)
Your tip will be sent to the appropriate team for review and response.
Contact our call center for more information or call 832-393-4220.
FIFA 26 Country map
Houston Matches FIFA 26
Page last reviewed: May 11, 2026