European Public Health Policy
In November 2020, the European Commission took the first steps towards establishing a Common European Health Union. Europe has presented proposals for public health policy improvements to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and manage future health emergencies.
The move aims to strengthen the European Health’s Framework by using lessons learned from Covid-19 Response, providing greater preparedness and rapid response from key European agencies such as the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and FRONTEX.
The ECDC’s mandate needs to be strengthened in several areas, including preparedness and response planning, epidemiological surveillance, networking of Europe Reference Laboratories;
How does ETIAS check visitor health?
Following the launch of the ETIAS authorization system, public health aspirations in Europe will intensify. Citizens wishing to travel to Europe soon will need to fill out an ETIAS application online for a pre-departure health check, among other things.
To obtain ETIAS, travelers must submit personal information and passport data in the application. Indication of nationality is mandatory to identify people from countries where the disease is critical in terms of outbreaks.
Could ETIAS have stopped the spread of COVID-19?
COVID-19 has spread to most countries worldwide, including Europe, and governments have imposed individual restrictions in this regard, which each traveler must consider before entering the Schengen area.
If ETIAS were already active, it would play an essential role in identifying the nationality of potential visitors before they arrive at the border.
The health questions given in the online application will help identify travelers who may be ill.
Suppose a similar situation arises through ETIAS in the future. In that case, there is hope that the ETIAS pre-screening process may reduce the transmission of diseases abroad.