Beating Covid-19 with public health measures
Reply to Recommendation
| Doc. 15613
| 22 September 2022
- Author(s):
- Committee of Ministers
- Origin
- Adopted at the 1442nd meeting
of the Ministers’ Deputies (14 September 2022). 2022 - Fourth part-session
- Reply to Recommendation
- : Recommendation 2222
(2022)
1. The Committee of
Ministers has carefully considered Parliamentary Assembly
Recommendation 2222 (2022) “Beating Covid-19 with public health measures”. It has
forwarded the text to the Steering Committee for Human Rights in
the fields of Biomedicine and Health (CDBIO), the European Committee
of Social Rights (ECSR), the Governmental Committee of the European
Social Charter and European Code of Social Security and to the European
Platform for Social Cohesion (PECS)/European Committee for Social
Cohesion (CCS) for information and possible comments.
2. The Committee of Ministers welcomes the Assembly's attention
to the issue of the Covid-19 pandemic from the perspective of effective
and sustainable management to respond to any new public health crisis,
in accordance with human rights and fundamental freedoms. It recognises
that the health crisis may expose to serious socio-economic inequalities
and calls on Council of Europe member States to ensure beating Covid-19
with public health measures in a human rights compliant way.
3. The Committee of Ministers underlines the importance of exchanging
information and best practices in the management of the crisis,
promoting co-operation and transversality towards better preparedness
to future public health crisis. In this connection, it highlights
the multilateral co-operation project “Protection of human rights
in healthcare during public health crises”, presented by the Secretary
General in January 2021, to assist member States in learning lessons
together on the management of this crisis and to be more resilient
when faced with future public health crises, with institutions more
capable of managing such crises in a sustainable, transparent, and
understandable manner, in line with human rights standards, thereby
promoting public confidence.
4. In this context, the Committee of Ministers underlines the
importance and relevance of the European Social Charter, which constitutes
a resource for designing measures for prevention and preparedness
that are consistent with the right to health and respect for fundamental
social and economic rights. The Committee of Ministers recognises
in particular the importance of guaranteeing the right to the protection
of health (Article 11 of the Charter) and encourages the State Party
which is not yet bound by this provision to consider accepting it.
5. It also draws the Assembly's attention to the activities of
the CDBIO, whose mandate is to “conduct intergovernmental work on
human rights protection in the fields of biomedicine, as well as
health; in particular with regard to issues raised by the Covid-19
pandemic and taking into account the lessons to be learnt from the
health crisis”. In this regard, the Steering Committee is currently
finalising a draft Recommendation on equitable access to treatment
and equipment in situations of scarcity to be presented to the Committee
of Ministers in early 2023.
7. The Committee of Ministers also welcomes the Opinion on the
application of the Council of Europe Convention on the Counterfeiting
of Medical Products and Similar Crimes Involving Threats to Public
Health in the context of Covid-19 published by the Medicrime Committee
on 27 April 2021. It stresses in particular the importance of maintaining
the utmost vigilance in the face of the counterfeiting or falsification
of medicines and vaccines against Covid and recognises the relevance
of the Medicrime Convention in fighting criminal networks involved
in the break in the legal supply chain.
8. The Committee of Ministers also points to the essential contribution
of the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & Healthcare
(EDQM) to the global effort to fight the virus – by putting in place
a fast-track certification procedure and providing free access to
its quality standards, training materials, and other relevant guidance
on recombinant viral vector vaccines and for the independent and
coordinated testing of vaccine batches against Covid-19.
9. The Committee of Ministers recognises the leading role of
the World Health Organisation (WHO) when it comes to pandemic prevention
and response. It concurs with the Parliamentary Assembly on the
importance and added value of synergy and co-operation between Council
of Europe relevant bodies and the WHO, while respecting the complementarity
of the work of the respective organisations and bodies. In this
context, it informs the Assembly that the CDBIO is committed to
co-operation and communication with other organisations and bodies
as outlined in its
Strategic
Action Plan on Human Rights and Technologies in Biomedicine (2020-2025) and enjoys longstanding co-operation with the WHO. Furthermore,
the Council of Europe is an associated member of the UN Inter-Agency
Committee on Bioethics (UNIACB) where it exchanges information and
co-ordinates relevant activities with UN agencies, including the
WHO.
10. In conclusion, the Committee of Ministers invites member States
to consider implementing the recommendations set out in
Resolution 2424 (2022) “Beating Covid-19 with public health measures” and in
Resolution 2329 (2020) “Lessons for the future from an effective and rights-based
response to the Covid-19 pandemic”.
