International Health Regulations
Encyclopedia
The International Health Regulations 2005 are legally binding regulations (forming international law
International law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...

) that aim to a) assist countries to work together to save lives and livelihoods endangered by the spread of diseases and other health risks, and b) avoid unnecessary interference with international trade and travel.

The purpose and scope of IHR 2005 are to prevent, protect against, control and provide a public health response to the international spread of disease in ways that are commensurate with and restricted to public health risks, and which avoid unnecessary interference with international traffic and trade. (Art. 2, IHR 2005)

The International Health Regulations Evolution

The International Health Regulations originated with the International Sanitary Regulations adapted at the International Sanitary Conference in Paris in 1851. The cholera epidemics that hit Europe in 1830 and 1847 made apparent the need for international cooperation in public health. In 1948, the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...

 Constitution came about. The Twenty-Second World Health Assembly (1969) adopted, revised and consolidated the International Sanitary Regulations, which were renamed the International Health Regulations (1969). The Twenty-Sixth World Health Assembly in 1973 amended the IHR (1969) in relation to provisions on cholera. In view of the global eradication of smallpox, the Thirty-fourth World Health Assembly amended the IHR (1969) to exclude smallpox in the list of notifiable diseases.

During the Forty-Eighth World Health Assembly in 1995, WHO and Member States agreed on the need to revise the IHR (1969). The revision of IHR (1969) came about because of its inherent limitations, most notably:
  • narrow scope of notifiable diseases (cholera
    Cholera
    Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...

    , plague, yellow fever
    Yellow fever
    Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....

    ).http://www.who.int/features/qa/39/en/index.html The past few decades have seen the emergence and re-emergence of infectious disease
    Infectious disease
    Infectious diseases, also known as communicable diseases, contagious diseases or transmissible diseases comprise clinically evident illness resulting from the infection, presence and growth of pathogenic biological agents in an individual host organism...

    s. The emergence of “new” infectious agents Ebola
    Ebola
    Ebola virus disease is the name for the human disease which may be caused by any of the four known ebolaviruses. These four viruses are: Bundibugyo virus , Ebola virus , Sudan virus , and Taï Forest virus...

     Hemorrhagic Fever and the re-emergence of cholera and plague in South America and India, respectively;
  • dependence on official country notification; and
  • lack of a formal internationally coordinated mechanism to prevent the international spread of disease.


These challenges were placed against the backdrop of the increased travel and trade characteristic of the 20th century.

The IHR (2005) entered into force, generally, on 15 June 2007, and are currently binding on 194 countries (States Parties) across the globe, including all 193 Member States of WHO.

The Principles Embodying the IHR (2005)

The implementation of IHR (2005) shall be:
  1. With full respect for the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedom of persons;
  2. Guided by the Charter of the United Nations
    United Nations
    The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

    and the Constitution of the World Health Organization
    ;
  3. Guided by the goal of their universal application for the protection of all people of the world from the international spread of disease;
  4. States have, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international law, the sovereign right to legislate and to implement legislation in pursuance of their health policies.In doing so, the should uphold the purpose of these Regulations. (Art 3. IHR (2005))
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