Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) appears to be spreading in this country. In addition to the Taipei Municipal Hoping Hospital, suspected cases of infection have been reported in several other places. The next 10 days will be a crucial period in determining how well this country will make it through the first wave of this crisis. We hope that people will cooperate with the health authorities in suppressing the outbreak. But is the nation prepared for a worst-case scenario?
The impact of SARS is not limited to the medical and public health spheres -- it also includes industrial and economic decline, a cutback in social activities, restrictions on diplomatic activities and travel and national security. Experts believe the virus's impact domestically will be more severe than that of the 921 earthquake.
After that quake, the president immediately issued an emergency decree while the executive and legislative branches enacted a law allowing for the use of military personnel and other resources for earthquake relief. The law also removed government debt ceilings and provided a legal basis for relief and reconstruction budgets. The post-quake relief and reconstruction work continues today. Without these emergency measures, reconstruction work would have been a nightmare.
To tackle the SARS outbreak, some have suggested that the president issue an emergency decree to facilitate epidemic-control measures, while others have said the Legislative Yuan should enact a special law to provide a legal basis for epidemic-control work. Still others have called for amendments to the Disaster Prevention and Rescue Law (
The government should enact a special law to facilitate and coordinate all SARS-control measures. The president could issue an emergency decree, but since China has not announced a similar decree, such a move in this country might mislead the international community and trigger panic domestically. Most of the reported SARS cases in this country have turned out to be nothing more than the common cold or other ailments with symptoms similar to SARS.
Amending the Disaster Prevention and Rescue Law might be inappropriate because epidemic control is very different in nature from the types of disasters covered by the law. They should not be put in the same legal basket. Besides, SARS prevention involves limiting the rights of large numbers of people, which means it should be excluded from the scope of other general laws. Putting a SARS-prevention law into a general law will incur a problem of the status of these laws as well as their authorizing too much power.
With a SARS-prevention law, the government would be able to limit the entry and exit of both Taiwanese and foreigners. Health authorities would be able to undertake mandatory tests at public venues and to put suspected SARS patients in mandatory quarantine, and to mobilize military doctors and troops -- or even private-sector resources and manpower if necessary -- for epidemic-control work. The law should also raise the debt ceiling and allow for special budgets to fund epidemic-control work as well as bail out the airline, transportation and tourism sectors, which have been hard hit by the epidemic.
SARS is not an incurable disease, but it is not going to go away anytime soon unless an effective vaccine is invented. The fight against SARS knows no national boundaries or time limits. Every country is in for a long-term battle. Only patience, attention and compassion will win the fight.
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