Although disasters may affect everyone in a community, in different ways or to varying degrees, those people with special needs are particularly vulnerable. The vulnerable population may include those people who are physically or mentally challenged, medically or chemically dependent, aged, very young, homeless or non-English speaking. What has become increasingly apparent, to emergency professionals in Santa Clara County, is that traditional disaster response and recovery methods occasionally fall short of addressing the special needs of the vulnerable population.

The Vulnerable Population Coalition Plan is a cooperative approach designed to identify, define and formulate a protocol for local emergency managers and first responders to deliver more effective disaster services to those with special needs. The Vulnerable Population Coalition Plan is the result of a collaborative effort among the various emergency services and community-based organizations (CBO) that are currently involved in serving the needs of this special portion of the population.

The Vulnerable Population Coalition Plan falls under the CADRE charter that links the County of Santa Clara with community-based resources for disaster response and recovery efforts.