Get Ready Day2026 · Date · History
APHA holds Get Ready Day on the third Tuesday in September as part of its Get Ready preparedness campaign; APHA’s campaign archive describes a September 2007 event as the first-ever Get Ready Day.
About Get Ready Day
Get Ready Day is an American Public Health Association preparedness observance held on the third Tuesday in September.
APHA uses the day to encourage households, workplaces, campuses and communities to think ahead about emergencies and disasters.
Why Get Ready Day matters
The day is part of APHA’s wider Get Ready campaign, which launched in 2006.
Preparedness needs vary by location and hazard. General awareness material is most useful when paired with current instructions from local emergency-management, public-health and weather authorities.
History of Get Ready Day
APHA launched the Get Ready campaign in 2006.
An APHA campaign archive describes a September 2007 event as its first-ever Get Ready Day.
APHA now places Get Ready Day on the third Tuesday of each September and times it to National Preparedness Month.
The observance remains an APHA-led preparedness campaign rather than a government-mandated holiday.
How the observance developed
This timeline uses documented milestones from reviewed sources. Missing stages are left out rather than guessed.
American Public Health Association (APHA)
APHA’s Get Ready campaign material and archived first-ever event support APHA as the creator of the observance.
American Public Health Association (APHA)
The observance is an APHA campaign initiative rather than a government proclamation.
First documented observance
APHA’s archived campaign blog calls its September 2007 celebration the first-ever Get Ready Day.
American Public Health Association (APHA)
Current APHA pages continue to publish the annual rule and participation guidance.
What the evidence establishes
Confirmed institutional roles and milestones are shown first. Details that could not be established from the reviewed sources are listed separately below.
4 fields not established in reviewed sources
How to Observe Get Ready Day
Review the emergency contacts and official alert systems relevant to your area.
Check whether household or workplace emergency plans and supplies are current, using official local guidance for the hazards that apply where you live.
Discuss communication and meeting plans with household members without publishing private addresses, medical details or other sensitive information.
Use APHA and public emergency-management resources as general planning aids; follow real-time instructions from competent authorities during an actual emergency.
Get Ready Day Facts
Get Ready Day falls on the third Tuesday in September.
APHA’s Get Ready campaign dates to 2006, and its archive records the first-ever Get Ready Day in September 2007.
The observance is linked to National Preparedness Month.
It is an awareness campaign, not a guarantee that any particular plan or supply list will be sufficient for every emergency.
Topic and context
What this page does not assume
- Keep the source-defined country, community, organizer or institutional scope; do not silently broaden it.
- Do not treat the title alone as proof of government recognition or public-holiday status.
- Do not add a creator, founding story or origin claim unless the supporting evidence establishes it.
Evidence & sources
Sources used across the guide are gathered here. Labels show how each source supports the page, and contextual references are kept separate from primary evidence.
American Public Health Association — About APHA Get Ready
American Public Health Association — Get Ready Day
APHA Get Ready campaign archive — 2007 first-ever Get Ready Day
American Public Health Association — About APHA Get Ready (opens in a new tab)
Public Health Association
American Public Health Association — Get Ready Day (opens in a new tab)
Public Health Association
APHA Get Ready campaign archive — first-ever Get Ready Day, 2007 (opens in a new tab)
Organizer Archive
Understand it, compare it, then explore further
Start with the most common factual questions, then compare closely related observances and explore useful connections.
Frequently asked questions
When is Get Ready Day?
Third Tuesday in September; 15 September in 2026 The documented recurrence rule is: Third Tuesday in September.
Does Get Ready Day fall on the same date every year?
It follows a recurring calendar rule, so the Gregorian date can change from year to year.
Is Get Ready Day an official public holiday?
The reviewed sources verify it within this scope: American Public Health Association / emergency preparedness. That recognition does not by itself make it a statutory public holiday; the site only makes public-holiday claims when reliable evidence explicitly does so.
Who established or recognizes Get Ready Day?
The reviewed sources identify American Public Health Association (APHA) as the proclaiming or establishing body. Current facilitation or coordination is recorded as American Public Health Association (APHA).
Is Get Ready Day international or country-specific?
No single country is assigned to this observance. Its documented scope is: American Public Health Association / emergency preparedness. Use that scope rather than assuming worldwide or country-specific status.
How is this page verified?
The factual information is checked against reviewed sources, including the date pattern, scope and institutional history. This page was checked on 2026-09-25.
When is Get Ready Day?
APHA holds it on the third Tuesday in September.
Who runs Get Ready Day?
The American Public Health Association runs it as part of the APHA Get Ready campaign.
When did it begin?
APHA’s campaign archive describes a September 2007 celebration as its first-ever Get Ready Day.
Is it an official public holiday?
No public-holiday status is asserted. It is a preparedness-awareness observance.
Other observances on September 21
These observances are also listed on September 21, 2027.
Armenia Independence Day
Armenia’s legal-information system records the 21 September 1991 independence referendum, the 24 September 1991 decision making September 21 a festive non-working day, and the current Holid…
Belize Independence Day
Belize government sources identify September 21, 1981 as the date of independence. The current public-holiday framework is separate: the Holidays Act makes scheduled days public holidays, a…
Independence Day
Malta government history states that Prime Minister George Borg Olivier set September 21 as Independence Day; UK legislation fixes 21 September 1964 as the independence transition and curre…
International Day of Peace
A/RES/36/67
IT Professionals Day / IT Pro Day
SolarWinds states that IT Pro Day began in 2015 and is observed on the third Tuesday of every September.
National Cat & Dog Gut Health Awareness Day
AnimalBiome documented celebrating Cat & Dog Gut Health Awareness Day on September 21, 2022 while launching its inaugural State of the Gut report. The Animal Medical Center independently li…