The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) was founded after President George W. Bush’s 2002 State of the Union Address, in which he asked all Americans to volunteer in support of their country. It is a specialized component of Citizen Corps, a national network of volunteers dedicated to ensuring hometown security. Citizen Corps, along with AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and the Peace Corps, are all part of the President’s USA Freedom Corps, which promotes volunteerism and service throughout the nation.

The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) is a national system that is run on the local level to meet the unique challenges of local areas, and bring together people who have skills related to healthcare, as well as citizen volunteers who would be interested in assisting during an emergency impacting the health and well-being of the community. At this time, Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) are housed in city and town health offices, hospitals, universities, and emergency medical services locations. Most of the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) works with other local and emergency preparedness groups.

Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) volunteers are trained and prepared to respond to emergencies in their communities. They function as part of their local emergency preparedness teams, supplementing existing emergency and public health resources and agencies such as fire, police, and ambulance services. They also provide education, outreach and various health services throughout the year. The result is a collaborative effort that is prepared for large scale public health crises.

In Region 2, there are three Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) units: Greater Grafton MRC, Wachusett MRC, and Worcester Regional MRC. Citizens may choose to join any that they’d like. To join, please visit MA Responds to register.

Each volunteer comes with skills, various professional licensure, and interests. Units will match volunteers with positions that attempt to meet the needs of both the event/emergency and the volunteer. These are the most common positions volunteers have filled:

* Vaccine Clinics (Flu, COVID19, etc) – greeter, registration, flow coordinator, vaccinators, observers
* COVID19 Testing site support
* COVID19 Contact Tracers
* Staff/Greeter for special events (medical and non-medical)
* Staffing/Support for emergency shelters (warming/cooling)
* Staffing/Support at volunteer reception centers
* Staff/Support emergency call centers
* Provide health information at a fairs or town events
* Documentation support at health offices
* Supply & logistics management
* Translation/Interpreter assistance
* Provide 1st Aid, CPR/AED/Stop the Bleed trainings
* Task Force – Trailers
* Partner with local CERT Teams
* Participate in drills & exercises as player/actors
* Driver for Meals on Wheels delivery
* Amateur radio operations support
* And other activities as each emergency is different

For more information regarding the MRC units in Region 2, please contact the appropriate Unit Leader:

Regional Deployment Protocols