International Health Regulations Implemented in the United States

The U.S. government formally accepted the International Health Regulations (IHR) in December 2006 and is now implementing these new international rules.

The IHR regulations are an international legal instrument that governs the roles of the World Health Organization (WHO; Geneva, Switzerland) and its member countries (Member States) in relation to disease outbreaks and other public health events with international impact. They establish a framework for countries that are party to the regulations to promptly and transparently report on and respond effectively to health events that present a risk of spread to other countries, and require a coordinated international response.

Countries that have accepted the IHR also have a much broader responsibility to diagnose and respond to public health emergencies. The regulations give the WHO clearer authority to recommend to its Member States measures that will help contain the international spread of disease, including public health actions at ports, airports, land borders, and any means of transport that involves international travel.

The revised regulations include a list of four diseases--smallpox, polio, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and new strains of human influenza--that Member States must immediately report to the WHO. The regulations provide an algorithm to determine whether other incidents, including those of unknown causes or sources, constitute public-health events of international concern.

Many of the provisions in the new regulations are based on the experience the global community has gained and lessons it has learned over the past 30 years, including the emergence of SARS and the H5N1 strain of avian influenza.

The previous version of the IHR, when adopted in 1969, applied to only four diseases: cholera, yellow fever, smallpox, and plague. In recent decades, increases in international travel and trade, along with marked developments in communication technology, have led to new challenges in the control of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. .

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Washington DC, USA) has the lead role in carrying out the requirements of the updated IHR, in cooperation with many other departments and agencies of the U.S. government. The HHS secretary's operations center is the central body responsible for reporting events to the WHO.


Related Links:
World Health organization
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services