Fact Sheet on the International Health Regulations (2005)

As of July 2007, the United States and other Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO) will follow a new set of International Health Regulations (IHRs), the international law designed to protect the health of people around the world without interfering with travel and trade.

Under the new Regulations, Member States must notify the WHO Secretariat of public-health emergencies of international concern (PHEICs), and better identify and respond to these events. In addition, the Regulations require Member States to put in place a minimum set of routine public-health measures to govern the entry and exit of people and goods.  
The revised IHRs define PHEICs as extraordinary events that pose a public-health risk through the international spread of disease to the rest of the world.  A successful response to these events requires many countries to work together.

Requirements for expanded reporting of diseases, events

Under the updated Regulations, Member States must report outbreaks of four diseases as public-health emergencies of international concern: smallpox, polio (wild type), new strains of human influenza, and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome. In some cases, Member States will have to report outbreaks of cholera, pneumonic plague, yellow fever, viral hemorrhagic fever, and West Nile fever, among other diseases.
Countries will use an IHR decision tool and the following criteria to determine whether to report other events:

• Is the public-health impact of the event serious?
• Is the event unusual or unexpected?
• Is there a significant risk of international spread?
• Is there a significant risk of international travel or trade restrictions?

Once a country determines an event is of concern, it has 48 hours to assess the risk of the event. If authorities determined a potential public-health emergency of international concern exists, the country has 24 hours to report the event to the WHO Secretariat.

As of July 17, 2007, The United States will carry out the revised Regulations in conformance with our federal form of Government, which divides powers between the Federal Government and the States.

The United States also interprets the updated Regulations to mean that:

• Countries must report incidents that involve the natural, accidental, or deliberate release of chemical, biological, or radiological materials;
• Countries must report, when possible, potential public-health emergencies that are occurring in other countries; and
• There is no separate private right to legal action against the Federal Government.

Cooperation by Federal, State, and local officials is critical

To meet the requirements of the revised regulations, the United States will use already strong State and local reporting networks to receive information about events of concern. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has assumed the lead role in carrying out the requirements of the updated IHRs.

The HHS Operations Center is the central body responsible for reporting events to the WHO Secretariat.

Other Federal Departments and agencies that are supporting the effort include the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Homeland Security, Justice, State, Treasury, Transportation, and Veterans Affairs; the Environmental Protection Agency; the Joint Chiefs of Staff; the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; the Office of Management and Budget; the Office of Science and Technology Policy; the U.S. Agency for International Development; the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency; the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; and the U.S. Postal Service.

Last revised: May 29, 2007