20.A. Round table: COVID-19, infectious diseases, and human rights and risks in public health

Advantages and possible limitations of a human rights-based approach to infectious epidemics. Emerging questions of human rights, distributive justice, regulatory authority and efficacy associated with sustained social distancing measures and the management of health care access in a time of surging demand. Early evidence of the health and social impact of legal responses to COVID-19. KEY MESSAGES: States have both obligations and limitations under international human rights law in preventing and responding to infectious epidemics. The large-scale application of social distancing approaches can create acute pressure on poorer people and poses legal, moral and practical questions about the social burdens of disease control.