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.