Day 1
Wednesday 3 November, 2021
Times shown are in GMT+8 (Manila time).
| 9:00AM-9:45AM | SESSION 1 - OPENING | Opening Remarks | Martin Taylor, Director, Health Systems and Services WHO Regional Office of the Western Pacific (WPRO) Professor Pip Nicholson, Dean, Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne Professor Nancy Baxter, Head of School, Melbourne School of Population & Global Health, The University of Melbourne |
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| Programme Overview | Ben Lilley, Technical Officer, and Dr Genevieve Howse, Coordinator, Health Law and Ethics Unit (HLE), Health Systems and Services Division (DHS), WHO WPRO | ||
| The role and impact of legal frameworks on the COVID-19 response | Associate Professor Jonathan Liberman, Melbourne Law School and Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne | ||
| Strengthening systems for health emergency preparedness | Dr Tamano Matsui, WHO Health Emergencies Programme, WPRO | ||
| The International Health Regulations (2005) | Fernando Gonzalez-Martin, IHR Secretariat, WHO HQ | ||
| 9:45AM-11:15AM | SESSION 2 - ROLE OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND HEALTH EMERGENCY LAWS DURING COVID-19 AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR STRENGTHENING | Moderator: Dr Genevieve Howse, Coordinator, Health Law and Ethics Unit (HLE), Health Systems and Services Division (DHS), WHO WPRO | |
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Questions to consider: *To what extent have legal frameworks for public health and health emergencies supported an effective COVID-19 response? What challenges and limitations were faced? *What changes needed to be made to public health and health emergency laws during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are there plans or needs to make further changes? *Did limitations in public health and health emergency laws lead to a greater or extended use of emergency laws and states of exception? Did this have an impact on rule of law and governance? *What are some of the major lessons learned – how can legal frameworks be utilised for a more effective COVID-19 response and improve health emergency preparedness and response in the future? | Expert panel: Meiapo Faasau, Disaster Law & Advocacy Manager – Pacific, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Dr Bal Kama, Department of Pacific Affairs, Australian National University Bob Williams, Secretary of Health, Cook Islands Dr Posikai Samuel Tapo, Director of Corporate Services, Policy and Planning, Ministry of Health (VUT) Mandy Charlton, Director - Border Health, Department of Health (AUS) Dr Liu Yang, Legislation Department, National Health Commission (CHN) | ||
| 11:30AM-1:00PM | SESSION 3 - USE OF DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES IN THE COVID-19 RESPONSE | Moderator: Ben Lilley, Technical Officer, Health Law and Ethics Unit, Health Systems and Services Division, WHO WPRO | |
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Questions to consider: *How can legal and regulatory frameworks for digital technologies contribute to a more effective public health response? *To what extent have legal frameworks, related capacity and approaches to compliance and enforcement: ----supported the use of digital technologies in the COVID-19 response, including notification of cases, contact tracing, government decision-making, and supporting health promoting behaviours by individuals and communities ----protected the privacy of personal health information, including preventing its inappropriate use and disclosure *Did COVID-19 provide the impetus or opportunity to accelerate changes to legal and regulatory environments to provide for the use of digital health technologies? *What are some of the major lessons learned – for responding to COVID-19, for future emergencies, and for enabling the appropriate use of digital technologies for health? | Expert panel: Associate Professor Mark Taylor, Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne Dr Pura Angela Wee-Co, Country Manager (Philippines), ThinkWell Sze Yao Tan, Director – Legal Office, Ministry of Health (SNG) Dr Viengasavanh Kitthipong, Chief of Surveillance Division, Ministry of Health (LAO) Kyle DeYoung, Consultant, Health Law and Ethics, WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific |