A National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) has been planned to deal with medical care needs in disasters of great magnitude. NDMS is based on the concepts of the Civilian-Military Contingency Hospital System, in which civilian hospitals voluntarily commit a portion of their beds for military casualties. In the NDMS, the hospital beds will be augmented by medical teams and logistic support to enable the system to serve a large civilian disaster. The system is a cooperative effort of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Defense, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, State and local governments, and the private sector. NDMS will comprise 150 disaster medical response teams to clear and stage civilian casualties, an evacuation system, and 100,000 pre-committed beds in hospitals throughout the Nation. The system will serve national needs in the event of a massive peace-time disaster or an overseas conventional military conflict.