• Indian J Med Ethics · Jan 2021

    Implementing the Epidemic Diseases Act to combat Covid-19 in India: An ethical analysis.

    • P S Rakesh.
    • Visiting Faculty, Centre for Public Health, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, Kochi, 682041 INDIA; Bernard Lown Scholar, Department of Global Health and Population Medicine, Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health, Boston, USA.
    • Indian J Med Ethics. 2021 Jan 1; VI (1): 1-10.

    AbstractMany states in India have invoked the provisions of the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, as a major tool in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. The current review attempts to discuss the ethical challenges in implementation of the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, to combat Covid-19 in India. Implementation of the Act in India has exposed its major limitations. It remains merely as a "policing" Act with no emphasis on coordinated and scientific responses to outbreaks and without provisions for protecting the rights of citizens. The Epidemic Diseases Act in its current form has the potential to cause more harm than good. Furthermore, the Epidemic Disease (Amendment) Bill, 2020, has not addressed any of these concerns. There is need for a rights-based, people-focused and public health-oriented law in India to deal with epidemics.

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