Zika: Public Health (and Safety) Emergencies
George J. Annas Professor & Director, Center for Health
Law, Ethics & Human Rights Boston University Schools of
Public Health, Medicine, and Law
Major Human Rights Documents
• Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) • Geneva Conventions • International Covenant Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR) • International Covenant Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights (ICESCR) • Convention and the Rights of the Child (CRC)
• Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)
• A “public health emergency of international concern” (art. 12)
• “extraordinary event…risk of international spread of disease…potentially requiring an international response.”
The sovereign right [of each state to legislate and implement health policies shall be respected]
Public Health Emergency Responses
1. Prevention remains primary goal (a) can’t make prevention efforts worse off; (b) can’t create ‘worse’ viruses/infectious agents.
2. Government has Primary Responsibility (therefore must
follow basic human rights law, esp. nondiscrimination; right to health; women & children).
3. Must be Sustainable; should contribute to building a health care system and infrastructure, not silos.
4. No emergency exceptions to informed consent for
research. (including gene drives)