Alameda Alliance for Health (Alliance) has implemented a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) to maintain business operations during adverse conditions. These plans define organizational structure, procedures, and communication methods for responding to disasters or major incidents to support timely service restoration.

The DRP applies to all core system sites, critical processes, and facilities.

The BCP is intended to manage the impact of incidents on business functions and aims to reduce the number of ad-hoc decisions required during an event. Its priority is the protection of human life, followed by the restoration of business operations.

Disaster Recovery

The Disaster Recovery Plan prioritizes rapid restoration of technical capabilities to resume business operations quickly.

Key objectives:

• Address outages for all Tier 1 enterprise applications needed for business continuity during major incidents.
• Coordinate responses within teams and across Alliance IT.
• Escalate and communicate with the Incident Command Team for issues affecting Tier 1 services or operations.

Business Continuity

The BCP activates emergency teams to implement the program, with the plan accessible via SharePoint and offsite cloud storage for key personnel.

Key objectives:

• Communicate essential information to all stakeholders.
• Reduce risk of employee injury or loss of life.
• Limit damage and losses.
• Maintain continuity of care for members.
• Ensure timely payments to providers and staff.
• Respond quickly and sustain critical business functions.
• Guide leadership and recovery efforts.

This BCP is regularly reviewed and tested each year for ongoing improvement.

Responsibilities of Response and Recovery Team Members

Teams listed below work together to ensure a coordinated and effective response to any major incident or disaster.

• Incident Commander (IC): Leads the response to the incident, making critical decisions and overseeing the entire incident management process.
• Incident Command Team (ICT): Supports the Incident Commander and coordinates the response efforts across various teams.
• Executive Management Team (EMT): Provides strategic direction and resources, ensures that the organization’s priorities and objectives are met during the response.
• Emergency Response Team (ERT): Handles immediate response activities, ensuring the safety and security of all staff and premises.
• Incident Response and Recovery Team (IRRT): Manages the recovery process, working to restore operations and services as quickly as possible.

• Crisis Communication Team (CCT): Manages internal and external communication during and after the incident, keeping all stakeholders informed.
• Business Continuity Coordinator (BCC): Oversees the implementation and maintenance of the Business Continuity Plan, ensuring that all elements are up-to-date and effective.
• Information Technology Service Desk (ITSD): Provides technical support and manages IT-related issues during the incident response and recovery process.
• Facilities Team (FACILITIES): Ensures that the physical infrastructure and facilities are secure, operational, and able to support the recovery efforts.

Remote Work and Offsite Operations

If an emergency occurs, the Alliance will maintain business continuity by relocating operations to predetermined offsite locations. Since most staff work remotely, they will continue their duties via VPN. The Executive Management Team will assign offsite personnel and designate “safehouse” sites, ensuring essential functions persist during disruptions.

Emergency Succession

If the IC cannot manage an incident, authority passes to other EMT members. If no EMT members are available, the ERT takes over until an EMT member returns or a new EMT is chosen.

Emergency Powers

The following emergency powers are delegated to the ERT managing director, their designated alternate, or remaining ERT members. These measures ensure that the Alliance can effectively respond to and manage incidents, maintaining business continuity and stability.

• Establishing a command location.
• Closing, moving, or making any office, department, facility, or function remote.
• Managing financial accounts and transactions in the name of Alameda Alliance for Health.
• Borrowing funds as necessary from financial institutions.
• Executing necessary documents for borrowing and other agreements.
• Delegating authority to officers or employees within specified limits and conditions.
• Exercising powers that are normally reserved for other management committees.

Invoking the Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plan

In the event of a disaster or major incident, regardless of the circumstances or who first becomes aware, the Incident Commander (IC) or Incident Command Team (ICT) must be notified. They will then notify the Executive Management Team (EMT).

Each Alliance Department is required to develop and maintain a detailed set of contingency procedures that they will utilize in the event of a disruption based on the details outlined in the BCP and DRP. These procedures are collectively referred to as Playbooks which include an overview of each respective business unit as well as their standard operating and contingency procedures.

*Alameda Alliance for Health’s Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plan contains proprietary information, including Personally Identifiable Information (PII), intellectual property, and technical configuration and implementation detail. To maintain accepted privacy and security standards, the Alliance does not distribute printed or electronic copies of their contingency planning documents in their entirety to external sources.