On July 22, 2020 The World Health Organization (WHO) along with other key bodies had launched COVID-19 Law Lab(www.COVIDLawLab.org). It is a database of laws that countries had implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This will help countries to establish and implement strong legal frameworks to manage the pandemic across the world.
- The lab is a joint project of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), WHO, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University.
Key Info– This is the 1st initiative to start studying governance response to a pandemic and to measure what works and what not.
Aim of the establishing the lab– To ensure that laws protect the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities and that they comply with international human rights standards.
About COVID-19 Law Lab
i.It was launched with gathered and shared legal documents from over 190 countries across the world. The database will continue to grow as more countries and themes are added.
ii.The database includes state of emergency declarations, quarantine measures, disease surveillance, legal measures relating to mask-wearing, social distancing, and access to medication and vaccines.
iii.The Law Lab currently organizes COVID-19 law into the following categories: Access to health services, Administrative penalties, Contact tracing among others.
iv.It will also feature research on different legal frameworks for COVID-19.
v.It enhanced the work of the universal health coverage(UHC) Legal Solutions Network, which was established to help countries achieve universal health coverage by implementing rights-based legal frameworks.
Recent Related News:
i.WHO Launched ‘COVID-19 Technology Access Pool’ for equal access to Life-saving Tech during an event co-hosted by WHO and Costa Rica on May 29, 2020 at Geneva, Switzerland.
ii.WHO and UN’s postal agency releases commemorative stamp on 40th anniversary of smallpox eradication
About WHO:
Headquarters– Geneva, Switzerland
Director-General– Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
