National-level Regulations Research Articles

The EU as Active and Passive Political Determinant of Forced Migrants’ Health: Insights from the Case of Germany

Context: This article examines the EU's function as a political determinant of health (PDoH) in national-level regulation of forced migrants’ access to health(care), with a focus on Germany. It sheds light on the role the EU has come to play—and has been assigned—in national policy making under the impact of different crises. Methods: By applying the concepts of claims and frames/framing, the article examines in a document analysis how and to what end(s) the EU as a polity and specific EU legislation were invoked in German draft legislation. Findings: Increasing Europeanization in the areas of health and migration has not only forced national legislators to adapt legislation to abide by EU rules and standards, it has also prompted governmental actors to shift responsibility for policy reforms to the EU—even in cases where not all of these reforms were legally required. Conclusions: The EU's role as a PDoH must be considered from two angles: the EU's active potential to determine public health through its policies and laws, and its passive—to some extent involuntary—potential to do so through the strategic invoking of EU norms, rules, and (in)competences by actors across the EU multilevel governance system.

Indoor air quality control at national-level regulations: A special case in Indonesia

Introduction: While many national-level governments have worked to tighten atmospheric air quality standard, the Authors observe, Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) control as part of building-codes have remained understudied and not yet enforced in many national-level regulations. The COVID-19 pandemic seemed to trigger an immediate response worldwide for IAQ control. Indoor air pollutants need to be tightly regulated. International agencies have produced recommendations to cope with the pandemic, however, national- level IAQ standards and building codes have been slow to adapt.
 Materials and methods: IAQ regulations from various nations worldwide were studied along with the international standards: The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), and World Health Organization (WHO). A comprehensive review was conducted comparing the national-level building codes and regulations as legal implementation instruments. Focus group discussions were also conducted to complement preliminary findings and further analysis.
 Results: Except for Indonesia, bacteria and fungi have been categorized as infectious aerosols in many national-level regulations that fare up to the international standards as indoor air pollutants with their acceptable levels. However, while they set thresholds for pollutants, their effectiveness regulating IAQ in public buildings remain unknown. It also found that there is a significant lack of national building codes in Indonesia.
 Conclusion: The COVID-19 epidemic raises awareness of IAQ. The health aspect is currently being prioritized, particularly in Indonesia, where the majority of related regulations are still fragmented and prioritize energy conservation over health. This study can inform policymakers with evidence of IAQ control and practices worldwide for applicable regulatory building and implementation, as well as for health emergency and disaster risk management.

In flux: Annual transport and deposition of suspended heavy metals and trace elements in the urbanised, tropical Red River Delta, Vietnam

Due to the depositional environment, river deltas are said to act as filters and sinks for pollutants. However, many deltas are also densely populated and rapidly urbanizing, creating new and increased sources of pollutants. These sources pose the risk of tipping these environments from pollution sinks to sources, to the world's oceans. We provide detailed seasonal and annual assessments of metal contaminants in riverine suspended particulate matter (SPM) across the densely populated Red River Delta (RRD), Vietnam. The global contributions of elements from the RRD are all <0.2% with many elemental fluxes <0.01%, suggesting the RRD is not a major source of elemental pollution to the ocean. However, ‘hotspots’ of metal pollution due to human activity and the impacts of tropical storm Son Tinh (July 2018) exceed both national level regulations and international measures of toxicity (e.g. enrichment factors). There is widespread ‘extreme pollution’ of Cd (enrichment factor >40) and concentrations of As higher than national regulation limits (>17 mg/Kg) at all sites other than one upstream, agricultural-dominated tributary in the dry season. These ‘hotspots’ are characterised by high inputs of organic matter (e.g. manure fertiliser and urban wastewater), which influences elemental mobility in the particulate and dissolved phases, and are potentially significant sources of pollution downstream. In addition, in the marine and fresh water mixing zone, salinity effects metal complexation with organic matter increasing metals in the particulate phase. Our calculations indicate that the delta is currently acting as a pollutant sink (as determined by high levels of pollutant deposition ∼50%). However, increased in-washing of pollutants and future projected increases in monsoon intensity, saline intrusion, and human activity could shift the delta to become a source of toxic metals. We show the importance of monitoring environmental parameters (primarily dissolved organic matter and salinity) in the RRD to assess the risk of transport and accumulation of toxic metals in the delta sediments, which can lead to net-increases in anthropogenic pollution in the coastal zone and the incorporation of toxic elements in the food chain.

The governance of plastic in India: towards a just transition for recycling in the unorganised sector

ABSTRACT In the case of plastic waste regulations, existing policy frameworks ignore that recycling in developing countries is largely undertaken within the unorganised sector. To add to this policies such as Single Use Plastic (SUP) bans disproportionately penalise unorganised sector recycling units and workers employed within them. This paper seeks to identify the global framework of waste minimisation and the lacunae in its implementation in the case of plastic waste in India. This will be based on analysis of national level regulations on plastic waste, court cases in the High Courts of India, and results of a primary field survey of unorganised sector plastic recycling units in Mumbai. By doing so, this paper seeks to explain the importance of recycling as a productive activity, and the need to incorporate concerns of workers and small-scale enterprise owners from the unorganised sector, in order to achieve a just transition to sustainable plastic waste management.

SINKRONISASI PERATURAN PEMERINTAH PUSAT DAN PEMERINTAH DAERAH MENGENAI PENGENDALIAN BANJIR DI JAKARTA

The floods that occurred in several areas of the Special Capital Region of Jakarta Province are influenced by natural and unnatural factors, such as problem in spatial planning and its regulation in legal documents. This study discusses about synchronization problem between several regulations at national and regional level, namely Presidential Regulation Number 60 of 2020 and Regional Regulation of the Special Capital Region of Jakarta Province Number 1 of 2014. This study uses normative legal research method with statute and conceptual approach. The conclusion of this study is that there is still no regulation synchronization at the level of national and regional related to the floods control management. At the national level, Presidential Regulation Number 60 of 2020 already regulated in detail about floods control management through the spatial planning general policy, strategy of implementation, spatial system and structure, and direction of zoning regulation for Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, Bekasi, Puncak, and Cianjur regions. Different from that national level regulation, at the regional level, Regional Regulation of the Special Capital Region of Jakarta Province Number 1 of 2014, related to the floods control management, only focus on how to normalize the river as a part of drainage system in every district in Jakarta Province.

An Overview of the European Policies on ESG in the Banking Sector

In recent years, European policy makers have ramped up their efforts to create a regulatory framework for improving sustainability in the financial system. We contribute to the on-going debate on Environmental, Social and Governance in the banking sector by providing an organic overview of the European policies put in place. The legislative framework is currently being enriched by policy makers and regulators that are carefully pursuing the objective of a more sustainable economic system, where financial institutions may act as catalysts. We also offer a comparison of the national level regulations for ESG practices in banking institutions and the related disclosure requirements.

Using health data for decision-making at each level of the health system to achieve universal health coverage in Ethiopia: the case of an immunization programme in a low-resource setting

BackgroundFor evidence-based decision-making, there is a need for quality, timely, relevant and accessible information at each level of the health system. Limited use of local data at each level of the health system is reported to be a main challenge for evidence-based decision-making in low- and middle-income countries. Although evidence is available on the timeliness and quality of local data, we know little about how it is used for decision-making at different levels of the health system. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the level of data use and its effect on data quality and shared accountability at different levels of the health system.MethodsAn implementation science study was conducted using key informants and document reviews between January and September 2017. A total of 21 key informants were selected from community representatives, data producers, data users and decision-makers from the community to the regional level. Reviewed documents include facility reports, district reports, zonal reports and feedback in supervision from the district. Thematic content analysis was performed for the qualitative data.ResultsRespondents reported that routine data use for routine decision-making was low. All health facilities and health offices have a performance monitoring team, but these were not always functional. Awareness gaps, lack of motivating incentives, irregularity of supportive supervision, lack of community engagement in health report verification as well as poor technical capacity of health professionals were found to be the major barriers to data use. The study also revealed that there are no institutional or national-level regulations or policies on the accountability mechanisms related to health data. The community-level Health Development Army programme was found to be a strong community engagement approach that can be leveraged for data verification at the source of community data.ConclusionThe culture of using routine data for decision-making at the local level was found to be low. Strengthening the capacity of health workers and performance monitoring teams, introducing incentive mechanisms for data use, engaging the community in data verification and introducing accountability mechanisms for health data are essential to improve data use and quality.

Assessing the impact of regulations on the use and trade of wildlife: An operational framework, with a case study on manta rays

Overexploitation represents a significant threat to wildlife, with the severest impacts felt by slow growing, economically valuable species. Governments often seek to address this through regulating utilisation and trade of species, which is commonly catalysed by multi-lateral environmental agreements (MEAs) such as the Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES). However, it is often unclear to what degree CITES and associated regulations lead to tangible conservation outcomes. Robust impact assessments are needed to understand whether regulations are effective for achieving biodiversity conservation goals, and to learn lessons for future policy interventions. Yet such assessments are hindered by data paucity, bias, complexity and uncertainty. Here we discuss key challenges for assessing the impact of regulations on the use and trade of wildlife, and offer a practical approach to overcome them. Our approach combines an integrated framework for collating and analysing disparate and methodologically inconsistent data with a robust process to establish causal inference (and hence assess impact). This framework and process can be applied to any regulation, species or country context. To demonstrate its utility we apply this approach to the case of manta ray utilisation and trade (Mobula alfredi and M. Birostris) in Indonesia. This case study is particularly important due to the recent increase in the number of commercially important elasmobranchs listed in CITES appendices, with Parties adopting various national-level regulations to implement their CITES commitments. However, it is unclear to what degree these listings lead to meaningful regulatory reform, and much-needed reductions in fishing mortality, utilisation and onward trade. Indonesia is also a priority country for effective regulatory reform, due to its role as a major source country for international elasmobranch trade. Overall, we highlight challenges and opportunities for assessing the impact of wildlife trade regulations, which are generalisable across species and contexts, and provide the first attempt to assess the impact of such regulatory change on manta ray mortality in a source country. We also offer recommendation for future implementation and evaluation, emphasising the importance of mixed-methods, multiple datasets, and explicit acknowledgement of bias and complexity.

International program and provider mobility in higher education: Research trends, challenges and issues

International program and provider mobility (IPPM) in higher education has grown exponentially in the last decade but there is a dearth of research on this phenomenon. This article analyzes the trends and key issues identified in published academic research on IPPM from 2000 to 2018. The review uses a newly developed IPPM Classification Framework for analysis, focussing on four different modes of IPPM – branch campuses, joint universities, franchise programs, and partnership programs. All reviewed 364 publications were categorized according to IPPM mode, major theme, geographical orientation, type of research, publications source, and publication date. The findings illustrate the mass confusion which exists as to how international mobility activities are labelled and categorized. The findings also inform a call for more IPPM-focussed research on outcomes and impact, teaching and learning issues, and national-level regulations. Higher education researchers, policy makers, IPPM managers and faculty members will find the analysis useful and somewhat surprising.

Regulatory Reform on Hydroelectric Power Plant Development in Indonesia

This research essay will examine whether or not regulatory reform will succeed in providing a good regulation that gives significant effect to the development agenda, particularly in developing of the hydroelectric power plant which eventually fulfills citizen’s electricity needs. In order to obtain the license in developing hydroelectric power plant, the investor has to engage with at least 6 ministries at the national level and with the local government. The institutions are the Ministry of Public works, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the Ministry of Forestry, Capital Investment Coordinating Board, State Electricity Company and Ministry of Finance. In each institution, the investors have to do some stages which mostly take a very long time. Until this recent time, the investors of hydroelectric power plant must comply with at least forty four national level regulations and should gain at least fourteen licenses from the various ministries. The figure does not include the license from the local government such as principle permits, location permits. Licenses zoning, building permits and nuisance permit (hinderordonnantie). Regulation problems that occurred in the process of developing hydroelectric power plant greatly hamper the effort on providing electricity to all Indonesia’s citizen. To overcome this issue, the national strategy on regulatory reform was made. While reconceptualization on regulatory making process strategy and the capacity building on the policy and regulatory maker strategy might increase the effectivity on the implementation of upcoming regulation, regulatory simplification is the effective strategy that can accurately overcome the existing regulatory problem in developing a hydroelectric power plant in Indonesia.

Law, market building and public health in the European Union

European Union (EU) law is based upon a liberalising imperative, the goal of which is to construct a single market between member states. Yet, the EU is no ordinary trade pact, incorporating as it does a range of supranational political institutions and common policies in a range of areas beyond simple market building. Scholars have nevertheless noted a distinction between ‘positive’ integration (the formulation of common policies applying to all member states) and ‘negative’ integration (the removal of national-level regulations acting as barriers to market integration). In the context of debates about the implications of trade law and corporate activity for health, this article poses three related questions. First, to what extent does EU law afford corporations opportunities to challenge national-level health regulations? Second, to what extent do EU legal and political processes provide opportunities for positive pro-health supranational regulation, including that which might offset the effects of nega...

Policy towards Disabled Persons in China: National and Provincial Regulations

This double issue is focused on recent national and provincial policies towards disabled persons in China. The first part includes national level regulations promulgated from 2008 to 2017, includin...

Surgery and trauma care providers' perception of the impact of dual-practice employment on quality of care provided in an Andean country.

Dual-practice, simultaneous employment by healthcare workers in the public and private sectors is pervasive worldwide. Although an estimated 30 per cent of the global burden of disease is surgical, the implications of dual practice on surgical care are not well understood. Anonymous in-depth individual interviews on trauma quality improvement practices were conducted with healthcare providers who participate in the care of the injured at ten large hospitals in Peru's capital city, Lima. A grounded theory approach to qualitative data analysis was employed to identify salient themes. Fifty interviews were conducted. A group of themes that emerged related to the perceived negative and positive impacts of dual practice on the quality of surgical care. Participants asserted that the majority of physicians in Lima working in the public sector also worked in the private sector. Dual practice has negative impacts on physicians' time, quality of care in the public sector, and surgical education. Dual practice positively affects patient care by allowing physicians to acquire management and quality improvement skills, and providing incentives for research and academic productivity. In addition, dual practice provides opportunities for clinical innovations and raises the economic status of the physician. Surgeons in Peru report that dual practice influences patient care negatively by creating time and human resource conflicts. Participants assert that these conflicts widen the gap in quality of care between rich and poor. This practice warrants redirection through national-level regulation of physician schedules and reorganization of public investment in health via physician remuneration.

Explanation of 47-Year BOD Alternation in a Japanese River Basin by BOD Generation and Discharge

Average and 75 % biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) in the Yamato-gawa River, Japan, in 1963 were smaller than the criteria determined in 1970 (5 mg l−1); however, they were deteriorated up to 22–32 mg l−1 in 1970. The deterioration was caused by the population increase and economic and urban development. The national-level regulations on ambient water quality and pollutant discharge have been established in 1970. Municipal wastewater is the major contributor in pollutant discharges in the river basin. Estimated BOD discharge (PD(BOD)) in the river basin reduced to the level of 1963 in 2000; however, average and 75 % BOD were more than the criteria. Analysis on the relationship between BOD and PD(BOD) resulted in the five phases in 1963–2009. The equilibrium conditions changed from phase I to II because of the perturbation caused by the excess BOD discharge, self-correcting mechanisms were found in phase III, and equilibrium conditions changed from phase III to IV and V. The comparison of estimated BOD based on pollutant generation (PG) without measures and monitored BOD represented the following situations in 47 years: (1) It took several years before the effects of centralised WWTPs were observed, (2) PD(BOD) was less than 35 t-BOD day−1 for the linear relationship of PD(BOD) and BOD, and (3) combined effects of wastewater treatment, river water purification facilities and soft measures were estimated to be about 10 mg-BOD l−1 in 2010.

Benefit-Cost of River Water Environment and Investments Related to Water Environment in the River Basin

Huge investments for water and waste water management and ambient water environment improvement have been conducted for many years in economically developed countries including Japan. The investment for water supply, on-site and centralized municipal waste water treatment systems (WWTSs), river water purification facilities and dissemination of soft measures in households, and benefits from water quality improvement in the Yamato-gawa River Basin, Japan, in 1965–2009 were summarized based on the statistical data and existing literature. The benefits include ambient water quality improvement and employment of local fishery persons. The former was estimated based on the existing literatures. Average and 75% biological oxygen demand (BOD) in the River was less than 5 mg l-1 in 1963, rapidly deteriorated in the 1960s and exceeded 20 mg l-1 in 1970. The national level regulations on ambient water quality and pollutant discharges have been established in 1970. The relationship between accumulated investments and 'difference of estimated BOD based on BOD generation (PG(BOD)) and monitored BOD' (ΔBOD) suggested the critical history of pollutant discharge, water quality, and investments on the measures to improve river water quality: effects of investments were negative and not yet observed in the 1960s and the early 1970s when the total accumulated investment was less than USD 6.0 billion, effects of investments became positive in 1973, the relationship between PG(BOD) and water quality returned to the similar conditions in the 1960s after the late 1990s, and (4) positive combined effects of the measures on the River BOD quality were about 10 mg-BOD l-1 in 2010. The methods are applicable for other river basins in the world to evaluate the effectiveness of water quality improvement measures.

Universalism and the local organisation of elderly care

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the concept of territorial equality as an indicator of universalism in locally provided care services for older people. The research question explored is how the local organisation of care services impacts on and either strengthens or weakens local universalism.Design/methodology/approach – The analysis is based on case studies in six municipalities in Finland, Norway and Sweden.Findings – The paper shows that three kinds of organisational characteristics are of relevance for local universalism: the explicitness in assignment criteria, the organisational strength of service guarantees and the degree of co‐payments. Local universalism is highly dependent on the specific organisational arrangements at the local level, but in interplay with national level regulations. Of the three investigated kinds of organisational conditions, the local impact is largest on access criteria and the organisational strength of service guarantees.Originality/value – Although, t...

Az Európai Unió intézményrendszere és működése, a hazai környezetvédelmi infrastruktúra-fejlesztési projektek szemszögéből

The cooperation of the highly developed western European countries has led to significant success, mainly after the establishment of the European Union. The original goals, peace, prosperity and human rights were assured. However, the inner conflicts of the system have been producing operational difficulties time to time. One of the main goals of the "Lisbon Process 2000" was to eliminate these operational problems, in order to strengthen competitiveness. The accession to the EU meant great opportunities to the new members, first of all in the field of environmental infrastructure development. The EU support and funds made it possible to the eastern European countries to reach the level of the h developed counties in a few years. But it's clear that the support systems are difficult, the regulations and conditions are very strict. On one hand, an effective national level regulation and management has to be required, on the other hand the professionalism of the beneficiaries has to be increased in the near future.

The impact of U.S. policies to protect healthcare workers from bloodborne pathogens: The critical role of safety-engineered devices

In the United States (U.S.), federal legislation requiring the use of safety-engineered sharp devices, along with an array of other protective measures, has played a critical role in reducing healthcare workers' (HCWs) risk of occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens over the last 20 years. We present the history of U.S. regulatory and legislative actions regarding occupational blood exposures, and review evidence of the impact of these actions. In one large network of U.S. hospitals using the Exposure Prevention Information Network (EPINet) sharps injury surveillance program, overall injury rates for hollow-bore needles declined by 34%, with a 51% decline for nurses. The U.S. experience demonstrates the effectiveness of safety-engineered devices in reducing sharps injuries, and the importance of national-level regulations (accompanied by active enforcement) in ensuring wide-scale availability and implementation of protective devices to decrease healthcare worker risk.

The factors of success factors of the European universities in the process of incorporation to the European space of high education and the experience of a Catalan university

The aim of this paper is to relate the success factors mentioned by European University Association report Trends IV. European Universities implementing Bologna (EUA, 2005) with the results of a case study carried out in a Catalan (Spain) university (Masjuan et alii, 2006). We try to analyze close up the particularities of a concrete institution and to find out the mechanisms which can favour the process of reform or to difficult it. We take in account in this paper for space reasons only three factors: the relation to other higher education reforms; the right balance between national level regulation and coordination and institutional autonomy, and national financial support.

Just vote no! Union–busting in the European fast–food industry: the case of McDonald’s

This paper examines the problem of effectively regulating the labour relations practices of multinational corporations. It focuses on the activities of the McDonald’s Corporation in a number of European countries. The findings suggest that public and private codes of conduct have a very limited effect and that determined and well–resourced corporations can not only undermine regional forms of regulation—such as that provided by the European Union—but also, and to a considerable extent, national–level regulation. This is particularly evident in the area of independent trade union representation. Although its aim of avoiding collective bargaining and union recognition wherever possible is only partially successful, McDonald’s appears to have developed a number of highly effective strategies for limiting the presence of trade unions at restaurant level, particularly in avoiding or undermining statutory works councils and union representation rights.