The Public Health Agency of Canada is an agency of the Government of Canada that is responsible for public health, emergency preparedness and response, and infectious and chronic disease control and prevention.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) is an agency of the European Union (EU) whose mission is to strengthen Europe's defences against infectious diseases. It covers a wide spectrum of activities, such as: surveillance, epidemic intelligence, response, scientific advice, microbiology, preparedness, public health training, international relations, health communication, and the scientific journal Eurosurveillance. The centre was established in 2004 and is headquartered in Solna, Sweden.
The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) is the main statutory authority of the Australian Government responsible for medical research. It was the eighth largest research funding body in the world in 2016, and NHMRC-funded research is globally recognised for its high quality. Around 45% of all Australian medical research from 2008–12 was funded by the federal government, through the NHMRC.
National biosecurity in Australia is governed and administered by two federal government departments, the Department of Health and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. The Biosecurity Act 2015 (C'wealth) and related legislation is administered by the two departments and manages biosecurity risks at the national border. The Act aims to manage biosecurity risks to human health, agriculture, native flora and fauna and the environment. It also covers Australia's international rights and obligations, and lists specific diseases which are contagious and capable of causing severe harm to human health. Each state and territory has additional legislation and protocols to cover biosecurity in their jurisdiction (post-border) including the detection of pests and diseases that have breached the national border.
The National Security Committee (NSC), also known as the National Security Committee of Cabinet, is the peak decision-making body for national security and major foreign policy matters in the Australian Government. It is a committee of the Cabinet of Australia, though decisions of the NSC do not require the endorsement of the Cabinet itself.
Sir Christopher John MacRae Whitty is a British epidemiologist, serving as Chief Medical Officer for England and Chief Medical Adviser to the UK Government since 2019.
Deena Hinshaw is a Canadian doctor who serves as a Deputy Provincial Health Officer for British Columbia and served as Chief Medical Officer of Health for the province of Alberta from January 28, 2019, to November 14, 2022, after being removed by Danielle Smith. She provided daily updates on the COVID-19 pandemic in Alberta to the public throughout most of 2020 and into 2021, though she stopped holding regular briefings in at the end of June 2021. She also provided recommendations to Jason Kenney, the former Premier of Alberta and the Emergency Management Cabinet Committee.
The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) is a British Government body that advises central government in emergencies. It is usually chaired by the United Kingdom's Chief Scientific Adviser. Specialists from academia and industry, along with experts from within government, make up the participation, which will vary depending on the emergency. SAGE gained public prominence for its role in the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.
The National Cabinet is the primary Australian intergovernmental decision-making forum composed of the prime minister and state and territory premiers and chief ministers of Australia’s six states and two mainland territories.
The National COVID-19 Commission Advisory Board (NCC) was the Australian Government strategic advisory board for the national economic recovery to the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally formed as the National COVID-19 Coordination Commission on 25 March 2020, Prime Minister Scott Morrison described the body as responsible for advising the government on public–private partnerships and coordination to mitigate the social and economic impacts of the pandemic in Australia. On 22 July 2020, the commission was renamed the National COVID-19 Commission Advisory Board to better reflect the advisory, not executive, nature of the body.
The Biosecurity Act 2015 is an Act of the Parliament of Australia which manages biosecurity risks in Australia. It was enacted on 16 June 2015, after the Bill was passed with bipartisan support on 14 May 2015. It covers both agricultural and human medical biosecurity risks, including epidemics and pandemics, and is designed to contain and/or deal with any "diseases and pests that may cause harm to human, animal or plant health or the environment" in Australia.
The COVID-19 pandemic and its spread in Europe has had significant effects on some major EU members countries and on European Union institutions, especially in the areas of finance, civil liberties, and relations between member states.
The National Public Health Emergency Team for COVID-19 (NPHET) was a National Public Health Emergency Team within Ireland's Department of Health that oversaw and provided national direction, support, guidance and expert advice on developing and implementing a strategy to control the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Ireland.
Special Advisory Committee (SAC) is the term given to ad-hoc groups formed in Canadian government circles to provide advice and consultation, especially public health as governed by the Public Health Agency of Canada.
The Chief Medical Officer is the principal health advisor to the Australian government. The position is a medical appointment, reporting to the Departmental secretary for the Department of Health and Aged Care. The position is responsible for the Office of Health Protection which itself has responsibility for biosecurity, immunisation and disease surveillance. The position is also responsible for "maintaining high-quality relationships between the department, the medical profession, medical colleges, universities and other key stakeholders". Other responsibilities of the position vary according to the skills and background of the officeholder. The position was originally created in November 1982 because the newly appointed Director-General of Health was not a doctor. The position is an advisory in nature and does not have executive or operational authority.
Paul M. Kelly is an Australian public health physician, epidemiologist and public servant who is the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Australia, having served since 29 June 2020. He succeeded Brendan Murphy, who became the Secretary of the Department of Health.
The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) is a technical advisory group of the Australian Government. As part of the Department of Health, ATAGI provides advice to the Minister of Health on the immunisation program of Australia and related matters, including the strength of evidence pertaining to existing, new, and emerging vaccines.
Brett Andrew Sutton is an Australian public health doctor who served as the Chief Health Officer of Victoria between March 2019 and July 2023. Sutton served in this role during the COVID-19 pandemic and became a public face of the response to the pandemic in Victoria.
The New Zealand Microbiology Network (NZMN) is an advisory group to the Ministry of Health in New Zealand. It was established in 2014 through a contract from the Ministry of Health to the Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR).
