JOURNAL ARTICLE
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International Health Regulations and Transmissible Diseases
German Yearbook of International Law, Vol. 61 (2018), Iss. 1 : pp. 73–102
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Anika Klafki, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Chair of Public Law, Administrative Sciences and Comparative Law of Prof. Dr. Hermann Pünder, LL.M. (Iowa), Bucerius Law School, Hamburg, Germany.
Abstract
The world is increasingly vulnerable to infectious diseases. Although the fundamental reform of the International Health Regulations (IHR) in 2005 was heralded as the beginning of a new era of international health law, the Ebola outbreak 2014 shattered all hopes that the world would now be adequately equipped for epidemic outbreaks of transmissible diseases. The Ebola crisis is perceived as an epic failure on the part of the World Health Organization (WHO). The many dead are a sad testimony to the world's inability to adequately respond to the threat posed by contagions. In reaction to this defeat, policymakers now focus on hands-on initiatives to foster global health instead of reformulating international health law. So far, extensive investments and innovations within the WHO, the United Nations system, and in the private sector have multiplied rapidly. The mushrooming of various health initiatives, however, increases the complexity and reduces the consistency of the current global health landscape. The leadership role of the WHO needs to be restored to provide a coherent response for the next global scale public health emergency. To this end, a fundamental reform of the presently widely neglected international regulatory framework in the field of public law, the IHR, is of vital importance.
Table of Contents
| Section Title | Page | Action | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anika Klafki: International Health Regulations and Transmissible Diseases | 1 | ||
| Abstract | 1 | ||
| I. The Underestimated Threat of Infectious Diseases | 1 | ||
| II. International Health Regulations 2005 – A First Step Towards the Establishment of a Global Health Regime | 4 | ||
| A. Covering All Future Health Threats With the Notion ‘Public Health Emergency of International Concern’ | 5 | ||
| B. New Investigation Rights of the WHO | 8 | ||
| C. Obligation to Build and Maintain Core Capacities | 9 | ||
| III. Continuing Weaknesses of the International Health Regulations in Fighting Transmissible Diseases and Reactions to the Ebola Outbreak | 9 | ||
| A. Pandemic Prevention: Ineffectiveness of Notification Obligations | 9 | ||
| B. Pandemic Preparedness: Sluggish Development of Medical Core Capacities | 1 | ||
| C. Pandemic Response: Lack of Emergency Competencies | 1 | ||
| IV. Current Approaches to Advance Global Health Security | 1 | ||
| A. Preparedness at the National Level | 1 | ||
| 1. WHO Joint External Evaluation Tool | 1 | ||
| 2. Further Public and Private Initiatives | 1 | ||
| B. Emergency Response | 1 | ||
| 1. WHO Health Emergencies Programme | 1 | ||
| 2. Emergency Response Systems Within the UN | 1 | ||
| 3. Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility of the World Bank | 2 | ||
| C. Research and Development | 2 | ||
| 1. WHO Research and Development Blueprint for Action to Prevent Epidemics | 2 | ||
| 2. Further Public and Private Initiatives | 2 | ||
| V. Need of a Revised Legal Framework for the New Global Health Regime | 2 | ||
| A. Transaction Costs and Lack of Leadership | 2 | ||
| B. Legitimacy Issues | 2 | ||
| C. Outline of a Reform of the IHR | 2 | ||
| VI. Conclusion | 2 |