The COVID-19 pandemic saw many abuses of the legally binding International Health Regulations (IHR).
Now, with a vote on IHR amendments looming this March, some fear that world leaders aren’t doing enough to guard against future pandemics.
The vote concerns both a new treaty on pandemics and a proposal to amend the IHR.
Despite a nonbinding UN political declaration, negotiations have stalled, as lingering distrust and philosophical differences put low- and middle-income countries at loggerheads with their high-income counterparts.
A JAMA Health Forum paper calls for more concrete reforms, including: easing global access to science and medicines; increasing drug and vaccine capacity; funding the World Bank’s Pandemic Fund; creating enforcement mechanisms; and dealing with upstream drivers of pandemics, such as deforestation, wildlife trade and climate change.
