Draft Health Regulations under the microscope
11 Apr 2022
The health minister, Dr Joe Phaahla, has urged South Africans to comment on the Draft Health Regulations.
The minister made the call at a media briefing on the lifting of the Covid-19 state of disaster.
The draft regulations were published for comment in March 2022 designed to manage the Covid-19 pandemic and future pandemics going forward.
They were drawn up in terms of the National Health Act.
The draft regulations focus on the surveillance and the control of notifiable medical conditions; public health measures in points of entry; management of human remains and environmental health.
According to the minister, issues such as face masks and PCR tests post the 30-day transitional period will be contained in the final health regulations.
“Thus, we would like to urge people to use this window period to help us shape the proposed health regulations to ensure they reflect the views and aspirations of our people as far as managing the current and future pandemics is concerned”, he said.
The minister emphasised that the lifting or termination of the state of disaster doesn’t automatically mean the end of the pandemic.
He called on all eligible unvaccinated and partly vaccinated people to vaccinate as “vaccine remains the only effective weapon for us to prevent the resurgence of the pandemic and high number of casualties”.
The minister pointed out that the total number of vaccinated people in South Africa is very low compared to other countries that have lifted their lockdowns and “if we happen to be hit by another variant or wave, the chances of experience high level of transmissions and infections will be high”.
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(This article is provided for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. For more information on the topic, please contact the author/s or the relevant provider.)