Public health law and COVID-19: Human rights and global health security

Abstract

The WHO has highlighted the technical challenges of assessing immunity status, cautioning against immunity passports. Similarly, the ECDC indicated that “current scientific knowledge that exists on the immunological response to SARS-CoV-2 (quality, quantity and duration of human antibodies) or the available testing methods (laboratory based and point-of-care)” does not support their use. Accordingly, the European Commission has emphasised the risks compulsory testing, noting that “border control [is not] an effective measure to limit the transmission of the virus, while the Council of Europe raises awareness of the interference of SARS-CoV-2 measures on human rights, underlining that “the major social, political and legal challenge facing our Member States will be their ability to respond to this crisis effectively, whilst ensuring that the measures they take do not undermine our genuine long-term interest in safeguarding Europe's founding values of human rights, democracy and the rule of law”.Nevertheless, immunity passports and immunity registries are being discussed more than ever before, with governments under pressure to find a viable solution. This presentation will examine the GDPR, and current legislation protecting rights vs. legislation allowing testing, quarantine, administration of medicines, recording of immunity vs. vaccination. It will debate the legal nature of immunity passports and the relevance to fundamental European freedoms, linking key concepts to global public health law. Implications regarding the personal right in Health/right of Public Health and legal substance and human rights limitations will also be examined. Criteria and the use of immunity passports as limitations of human rights -prescribed by law, legitimate aim and necessary in a democratic society- with extrapolation in terms of discrimination will be discussed. Finally, the jurisprudential approach and control (national, European, ECHR, global) will be mentioned, along with a brief highlight to the implications for migrant populations and cross-border care.