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cases to WHO. WHO had no legal authority to request information
from China. The outbreak of SARS facilitated the 2005 revisions of
the IHR.5
The IHR (2005) were expanded to encompass the detection and
prevention of all infectious diseases.6 Reflecting the importance of
communication for early detection and response, States Parties must
inform WHO within 24 hours of any event that could be considered
a “public health risk to other States requiring a coordinated interna-
tional response.”7
From public health and epidemiological perspectives, the IHR
(2005) reflect disease control priorities applicable at local, regional,
and national levels: rapid detection of threats through surveillance
and reporting, identification of pathogens, and control measures to
contain the threat and reduce transmission. Therefore, the IHR (2005)
prioritizes the development of surveillance and response infrastruc-
ture (Annex 1), provides a guide to reporting (Annex 2 – providing a
yes-or-no flow chart), and imposes strict timelines for detection and
assessment. Early on, there is often uncertainty about a threat that
could provide an obligation to report—particularly if there are likely
to be negative economic consequences of reporting. Annex 2 guidance
attempts to address this, but ambiguity remains. The backdrop to the
PRC’s and WHO’s early actions regarding COVID-19 is a significant
measure of scientific uncertainty.
Methodologically, this chapter analyzes the obligations imposed
under Articles 6 through 17 of the IHR (2005) to the content of inter-
national disputes by reviewing the existing literature for timelines,
statements, declarations, and chronology. Articles 8 and 12 through
14 are not separately analyzed, either because they are irrelevant or
because their relevance is addressed within analysis of an Article with
overlapping content.
5. David P Fidler, “Revision of the World Health Organization’s International Health
Regulations” (16 April 2004), online: AmericanÂ
SocietyÂ
ofÂ
InternationalÂ
LawÂ
<https://
www.asil.org/insights/volume/8/issue/8/revision-world-health-organizations-
international-health-regulations>.
6. Sam Halabi, “The Origins and Future of Global Health Law: Regulation, Security,
and Pluralism” (2020) 108:6 Georgetown LJ 1608.
7. World Health Organization, “International Health Regulations” (2005) at arts
4-5, online: World Health Organization <https://www.who.int/ihr/publications/
9789241580496/en/>.
VULNERABLE
The Law, Policy and Ethics of COVID-19
- Title
- VULNERABLE
- Subtitle
- The Law, Policy and Ethics of COVID-19
- Authors
- Vanessa MacDonnell
- Jane Philpott
- Sophie Thériault
- Sridhar Venkatapuram
- Publisher
- Ottawa Press
- Date
- 2020
- Language
- English
- License
- CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
- ISBN
- 9780776636429
- Size
- 15.2 x 22.8 cm
- Pages
- 648
- Categories
- Coronavirus
- International