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The cover of a telegraphic code book from 1915. The cover page of a Public Health Report from 1919.
Believing that telegraph operators might read telegrams about an epidemic and then cause a panic, the PHS gave codebooks such as these to their officers. Using these books, PHS officers were able to transmit messages about epidemics in code. [Credit: Office of the Public Health Service Historian]

During the influenza pandemic, Public Health Reports provided public health experts with weekly updates on not only influenza but also a variety of other diseases. [Credit: Office of the Public Health Service Historian]

 
 
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