Infektionsschutz im liberalen Rechtsstaat

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jutta Mers
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Individual Rights ◽  
Public Interests ◽  
Health Measures

As the discussion on the introduction of mandatory vaccinations shows, there is nearly always a conflict between individual rights and public interests regarding public health questions. This book analyses if German infectious disease law has succeeded in solving this conflict. For this purpose, the conditions under which public health measures can be justified are considered. Based on this, the author examines if the central statutory provisions are in accordance with the constitution. In particular, this book deals with the question under which circumstances mandatory vaccinations can be established and whether the general clauses legally defined in German infectious disease law are in line with the constitution.

scholarly journals Time Course of COVID-19 Cases in Austria

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (9) ◽  
pp. 3270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanns Moshammer ◽  
Michael Poteser ◽  
Kathrin Lemmerer ◽  
Peter Wallner ◽  
Hans-Peter Hutter
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Reproduction Number ◽  
Average Duration ◽  
Northern Italy ◽  
Reproduction Rate ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Major Outbreak ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by a novel coronavirus, which first appeared in China in late 2019, and reached pandemic distribution in early 2020. The first major outbreak in Europe occurred in Northern Italy where it spread to neighboring countries, notably to Austria, where skiing resorts served as a main transmission hub. Soon, the Austrian government introduced strict measures to curb the spread of the virus. Using publicly available data, we assessed the efficiency of the governmental measures. We assumed an average incubation period of one week and an average duration of infectivity of 10 days. One week after the introduction of strict measures, the increase in daily new cases was reversed, and the reproduction number dropped. The crude estimates tended to overestimate the reproduction rate in the early phase. Publicly available data provide a first estimate about the effectiveness of public health measures. However, more data are needed for an unbiased assessment.

scholarly journals Could nasal irrigation and oral rinse reduce the risk for COVID-19 infection?

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 ◽  
pp. 205873842094175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuele Casale ◽  
Vittorio Rinaldi ◽  
Lorenzo Sabatino ◽  
Antonio Moffa ◽  
Massimo Ciccozzi
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Viral Load ◽  
Antimicrobial Agents ◽  
Nasal Irrigation ◽  
Oral Rinse ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Nasal Cavities ◽  
Oral Fluids ◽  
And Control

Public health measures are essential to protect against COronaVIrus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). The nose and the mouth represent entry portals for the COVID 19. Saline Nasal Irrigations (SNIs) can reduce the viral load in the nasal cavities. Oral rinse with antimicrobial agents is efficacious in reducing the viral load in oral fluids. We advocate the inclusion of SNIs and ethanol oral rinses as additional measures to the current public health measures, to prevent and control the transmission of any respiratory infectious disease, including COVID-19.

scholarly journals Vietnamese Public Health Practices in the Advent of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Lessons for Developing Countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 163-164
Author(s):  
Jeconiah Louis Dreisbach
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Short Communication ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
World Health ◽  
Public Health Policies ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) presents a great challenge to developing countries with limited access to public health measures in grassroots communities. The World Health Organization lauded the Vietnamese government for its proactive and steady investment in health facilities that mitigate the risk of the infectious disease in Vietnam. This short communication presents cases that could benchmark public health policies in developing countries.

scholarly journals A framework for communicating the utility of models when facing tough decisions in public health

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Thompson ◽  
Roderick McClure ◽  
Nick Scott ◽  
Margaret Hellard ◽  
Romesh Abeysuriya ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Complete Information ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Research Utilisation ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Policy Modeling ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Rapid Pace ◽  
Second Wave

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought the discipline of public health, infectious disease, and policy modeling squarely into the spotlight. Never before have decisions regarding public health measures and their impacts been such a topic of international deliberation from the level of individuals and communities through to global leaders. And nor previously have models – developed at rapid pace and often in the absence of complete information - been so central to the decision-making process. However, after more than 18 months of experience with pandemic modeling, policy-makers need to be more confident about which models will be most helpful to support them when taking public health decisions. We combine the authors’ collective international experience of modelling for and with Governments and policy-makers with prior research utilisation scholarship to describe a framework to assist both modelers and policy-makers consider the utility of models that may be available to them when faced with difficult public health and policy decisions. To illustrate these principles, a set of three independent but complementary modeling case-studies undertaken at the same time in NSW, Australia during that state’s unfolding second wave of COVID-19 infections is presented.

scholarly journals Facemask shortage and the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak: Reflection on public health measures

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huailiang Wu ◽  
Jian Huang ◽  
Casper J. P. Zhang ◽  
Zonglin He ◽  
Wai-Kit Ming
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Wuhan City ◽  
Medical Resources ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Effective Public Health

AbstractBackgroundA novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak due to SARS-CoV-2 infection occurred in China in late-December 2019. Facemask wearing is considered as one of the most cost-effective and important measures to prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, but it became a social concern due to the recent global facemask shortage. China is the major facemask producer in the world, contributing to 50% of global production. However, even full productivity (20 million facemasks per day) does not seem to meet the need of a population of 1.4 billion in China.MethodsPolicy review using government websites and shortage analysis using mathematical modelling based on data obtained from the National Health Commission (NHC), the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the People’s Republic of China, and Wuhan Bureau of Statistics.FindingsSupplies of facemasks in the whole of China would have been sufficient for both healthcare workers and the general population if the COVID-19 outbreak only occurred in Wuhan city or Hubei province. However, if the outbreak occurred in the whole of China, facemask supplies in China could last for 5 days if under the existing public health measures and a shortage of 853 million facemasks is expected by 30 Apr 2020. Assuming a gradually decreased import volume, we estimated that dramatic increase in productivity (42.7 times of the usual level) is needed to mitigate the facemask crisis by the end of April.InterpretationIn light of the COVID-19 outbreak in China, a shortage of facemasks and other medical resources can considerably compromise the efficacy of public health measures. Effective public health measures should also consider the adequacy and affordability of medical resources. Global collaboration should be strengthened to prevent the development of a global pandemic from a regional epidemic via easing the medical resources crisis in the affected countries.Research in contextEvidence before this studyWe searched PubMed and Web of Science for articles in English, between 1 Jan 1980, and 1 Jan 2020, using the search terms 1) (infection OR infectious disease* OR outbreaks) AND (modelling); and 2) (mask* OR facemask* OR medical resource*) AND (infection OR infectious disease* OR outbreaks). Most relevant studies identified were performed to predict diseases spread and to determine the original infection source of previous epidemics like SARS and H7N9. However, few studies focused on the medical resources crisis during the outbreaks.Added value of this studyTo the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the facemask shortage during the novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) outbreak in China. We have summarized in detail the management strategies implemented by the Chinese governments during the outbreaks. By considering three scenarios for the outbreak development, we simulated the facemasks availability from late-December 2019 to late-April 2020 and estimated the duration of sufficient facemask supplies. Our findings showed that if the COVID-19 outbreak occurred only in Wuhan city or Hubei province, facemask shortage would not appear with the existing public health measures. However, if the outbreak occurred in the whole of China, a shortage of facemask could be substantial assuming no alternative public health measures.Implications of all the available evidenceOur findings provide insight into the public health measures to confront medical resources crisis during infectious disease outbreaks. Effective public health measures should consider the adequacy and affordability of existing medical resources. Governments across the world should revisit their emergency plans for controlling infectious disease outbreaks by taking into account the supply of and demand for the medical resource. Global collaboration should be strengthened to prevent the development of a global pandemic from a regional epidemic via easing the medical resources crisis in the affected countries.

scholarly journals The Outcome and Implications of Public Precautionary Measures in Taiwan–Declining Respiratory Disease Cases in the COVID-19 Pandemic

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (13) ◽  
pp. 4877 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chih-Chia Hsieh ◽  
Chih-Hao Lin ◽  
William Yu Chung Wang ◽  
David J. Pauleen ◽  
Jengchung Victor Chen
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Major Purpose ◽  
Mortality And Morbidity ◽  
Mass Gatherings ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
First Case ◽  
The Government

With the rapid development of the COVID-19 pandemic, countries are trying to cope with increasing medical demands, and, at the same time, to reduce the increase of infected numbers by implementing a number of public health measures, namely non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). These public health measures can include social distancing, frequent handwashing, and personal protective equipment (PPE) at the personal level; at the community and the government level, these measures can range from canceling activities, avoiding mass gatherings, closing facilities, and, at the extreme, enacting national or provincial lockdowns. Rather than completely stopping the infectious disease, the major purpose of these NPIs in facing an emerging infectious disease is to reduce the contact rate within the population, and reduce the spread of the virus until the time a vaccine or reliable medications become available. The idea is to avoid a surge of patients with severe symptoms beyond the capacity of the hospitals’ medical resources, which would lead to more mortality and morbidity. While many countries have experienced steep curves in new cases, some, including Hong Kong, Vietnam, South Korea, New Zealand, and Taiwan, seem to have controlled or even eliminated the infection locally. From its first case of COVID-19 on the 21 January until the 12 May, Taiwan had 440 cases, including just 55 local infections, and seven deaths in total, representing 1.85 cases per 100,000 population and a 1.5% death rate (based on the Worldometer 2020 statistics of Taiwan’s population of 23.8 million). This paper presents evidence that spread prevention involving mass masking and universal hygiene at the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a 50% decline of infectious respiratory diseases, based on historical data during the influenza season in Taiwan. These outcomes provide potential support for the effectiveness of widely implementing public health precaution measures in controlling COVID-19 without a lockdown policy.

Quarantine Authority in Texas: A COVID-19 Case Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Price
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Local State ◽  
Individual Rights ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
The World

Abstract During the COVID-19 pandemic, governments around the world grappled with how to protect their citizens from disease. Governments had to carefully balance the tension between individual rights and public health measures, while also considering which level of government was best situated to act. This paper, focusing on the response to COVID-19 in Texas, discusses the constitutionality of quarantines by balancing individual rights and public health. This paper also discusses how quarantine authority is shared among local, state, and federal levels of government in Texas. Finally, this paper analyzes some of the early actions taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction to Health Law

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dede Onisoyonivosekume ◽  
Nour Mahrouseh ◽  
Orsolya Varga
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Personal Health Information ◽  
Individual Rights ◽  
Health Law ◽  
Infected People ◽  
Public Health Agencies ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Government ◽  
Set Up

In early February of 2020, attention was drawn to the increased number of deaths and the new cases of coronavirus infection. The epicentre of the outbreak was Wuhan in the People’s Republic of China. In order to control the outbreak, Chinese leaders called on the city authorities in Wuhan to set up mass quarantine centres for infected people. The Chinese government took this step to protect the public against infectious disease. This is an example of the conflicts between public health and civil liberties/individual rights. Government authority is the pillar of the public health law. The government retains the power to achieve and maintain common good by restricting – within solid international and national limits – individual rights concerning autonomy, privacy, association, and liberty. Public health agencies have the right to collect, use, and disclose a considerable amount of personal health information and to enforce certain vaccinations, medical examinations, and treatments. In addition to the power to isolate individuals to protect the public against the spread of infectious disease, their powers can be used to control businesses and professions. There are several legal interventions to prevent injury and disease and promote the public’s health. Among these tools are taxing policies, which encourage engaging in beneficial behaviour (fruit consumption) and disincentives to engage in high-risk activities (smoking).

scholarly journals Trust in social non-pharmaceutical interventions and travel intention during a pandemic

2021 ◽  
pp. 135676672110095
Author(s):  
Jin Young Chung ◽  
Choong-Ki Lee ◽  
Yae-Na Park
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Adaptive Behavior ◽  
Human Mobility ◽  
Willingness To Accept ◽  
Travel And Tourism ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Pharmaceutical Interventions

Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) become increasingly one of the most significant practices for preventing the spread of a pandemic through the movement of people (e.g., travel and tourism). Past studies argued that individuals’ acceptance of NPIs is adaptive behavior, which increases travel intention during a pandemic. Yet, firm beliefs about the extent to which others accept NPIs are as important as personal willingness to accept NPIs, due to the social and environmental components of public health measures against infectious disease. Thus, this study examined how one’s trust in social NPIs is related to travel intention during a pandemic. Data were collected in South Korea, one of the few countries where no measures to limit human mobility were taken after the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. Results showed that the trust in social NPIs meditates the relationship between the efforts to navigate travel constraints and intentions to travel during the pandemic.

scholarly journals Combining interventions to reduce the spread of viral misinformation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph B Bak-Coleman ◽  
Ian Kennedy ◽  
Morgan Wack ◽  
Andrew Beers ◽  
Joseph S Schafer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Generative Model ◽  
Combined Approach ◽  
Circuit Breakers ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
Large Corpus

Misinformation online poses a range of threats, from subverting democratic processes to undermining public health measures. Proposed solutions range from encouraging more selective sharing by individuals, to platform removal of false content and accounts that create or promote it. How, whether, and which strategies to implement depends on their relative and combined ability to reduce viral misinformation spread at practical levels of enforcement. Here we provide a framework to evaluate interventions aimed at reducing viral misinformation online both in isolation and when used in combination. We begin by deriving a generative model of viral misinformation spread, inspired by research on infectious disease. Applying this model to a large corpus of misinformation events that occurred during the 2020 US election, we reveal that commonly proposed interventions--including removal of content, virality circuit breakers, nudges, and account banning---are unlikely to be effective in isolation without extreme censorship. However, our framework demonstrates that a combined approach can achieve a substantial, ~50%, reduction in the prevalence of misinformation. Our results challenge claims that combating misinformation will require new ideas or high costs to user expression. Instead, we highlight a practical path forward as misinformation online continues to threaten vaccination efforts, equity, and democratic processes around the globe.

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