How Dr. Chan Intends to Defend the Planet from Pandemics

According to this article, the International Health Regulations (IHRs) treaty will strengthen the ability of the World Health Organization (WHO) to respond to a potential avian flu pandemic. The new treaty, which was adopted by the WHO on June 15 2007, commits governments to co-operate with Margaret Chan, the Director-General of the WHO, and report any emerging global health threats or possible avian influenza pandemics within 24 hours.

According to the article, the IHRs treaty will make it more difficult for governments to conceal data about a potential pandemic. The new treaty enables the WHO to break with normal United Nations practice, and use non-governmental sources, including the media and internet, in its surveillance of global health threats, including bird flu. If a country tries to hide data about a potential global health threat, Dr. Chan can override national sensitivities and report the possible threat.

According to the article, by making it harder for governments to hide pandemic data, the treaty may lead to more vaccine innovation. Vaccine innovation is important because current vaccines cannot keep up with the evolution of some virus strains. According to Vijay Samant of Vical, a firm investing in new pandemic technology, the new treaty will benefit new vaccine development. “Without access to the latest strains, researchers can’t come up with new vaccines,” he said.