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National Coordination Body and Coordination Body f...
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National Coordination Body and Coordination Body for Prevention and Eradication of Communicable Diseases are not the same
Published on: Apr 15, 2020 • 5:00 AM Author: PR Service
Considering the fact that views have emerged in the public as an attempt to disparage, impair and even formally question the work of the National Coordination Body for Communicable Diseases, in order to fully inform the public, we provide an overview of the activities undertaken on the basis of: the Law on Protection of Population against Communicable Diseases, the Law on State Administration and the Decree on the Organisation and Operation of State Administration.
Protection of the population against communicable diseases in Montenegro, measures for their prevention, control and eradication, implementation of epidemiological surveillance, competent entities for their implementation and the manner of providing funds for their implementation are prescribed by the Law on Protection of Population against Communicable Diseases (Official Gazette of Montenegro, No. 012/18 of 23 February 2018).
This law prescribes the obligation of establishing individual bodies and defines their competencies in order to protect the population from communicable diseases.
According to the provision of Article 9 of this Law, the Ministry of Health, on the proposal of the Public Health Institute, establishes a Commission for Protection of Population from Communicable Diseases.
This Commission is chaired by a representative of the Ministry of Health, and the Commission is composed of medical specialists (epidemiology, infectology, microbiology, pediatrics, pneumophysiology) and representatives of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Agriculture.
The provision of Article 77 of this Law stipulates that the Commission for Protection of Population from Communicable Diseases shall be established within 30 days from the day this Law enters into force.
Furthermore, Article 10 of the said Law stipulates that the Ministry of Health, on the proposal of the Public Health Institute, establishes a Coordination Body for the Prevention, Elimination and Eradication of Communicable Diseases (paragraph 1).
Paragraph 2 of the same Article prescribes the responsibilities of the Coordination Body, which include the removal or eradication of communicable diseases from the List of Communicable Diseases.
The provision of Article 78 of this Law, paragraph 2, stipulates that the existing bodies formed in accordance with the previous law will continue to perform their activities until the formation of bodies in accordance with this law.
The Coordination Body for the Elimination and Eradication of Certain Communicable Diseases was formed by the Decision of 19 April 2017 and amending this Decision from 19 February 2018 which, in accordance with the provision of Article 78, paragraph 2 of the applicable law, worked until the formation of a new body. In accordance with applicable law, the Ministry of Health has established the Coordination Body for the Prevention, Elimination and Eradication of Communicable Diseases.
In fulfilling its obligations under the Law on Protection of Population from Communicable Diseases, the Government of Montenegro, at the proposal of the Ministry of Health, adopted a Decision on taking measures to prevent and suppress the novel coronavirus.
The Ministry of Health issued:
- Rule book on closer conditions and manner of organisation and implementation of health surveillance and quarantine and conditions that must be fulfilled by quarantine accommodation facilities;
- Rule book on amendments to the Rule book on the manner of reporting communicable diseases, hospital infections, conditions and deaths of patients with these diseases;
- Rule book on amendments to the Rule book on the List of Communicable Diseases over which epidemiological surveillance is carried out and against which measures for the prevention and control of communicable diseases are applied, as well as on definitions of infectious diseases;
- Order to declare the COVID19 epidemic.
In accordance with the epidemiological situation caused by the emergence and spread of the infectious disease of the novel coronavirus, the Minister of Health, in accordance with Article 15 of the Law on Public Administration (Official Gazette of Montenegro, No. 078/18 of 4 December 2018) and Article 56 of the Decree on the organisation of the work of the state administration (Official Gazette of Montenegro, No. 087/18 of 31 December 2018, 002/19 of 11 January 2019, 038/19 of 5 July 2019, 018/20 of 18 March 2020) established the NATIONAL Coordination Body for Communicable Diseases (NKT) in order to take temporary measures to prevent the introduction, control and prevention of the transmission and spread of infectious disease.
Due to the extraordinary threats to the health and lives of citizens and the need for strong responses from different state bodies, the National Coordination Body included representatives of: the Ministry of Health, the Public Health Institute of Montenegro, the Clinical Centre of Montenegro, sanitary inspection, ministries of the Interior, Defence, Economy, Transport and Maritime Affairs, then the legislature, the Capital City, the National Security Agency and the Prime Minister's Office…
As the emerging epidemiological situation required stronger coordination between the various departments (ministries, administrative bodies and other entities) and other competent bodies, which play a very important role in taking appropriate measures and activities to protect the citizens of Montenegro from spreading the epidemic caused by the novel coronavirus, on 17 March 2020, the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Policy and the Financial System - Milutin Simović was appointed President of the National Coordination Body, and the Minister of Health - Kenan Hrapović was appointed as his Deputy.
The designation of the Deputy Prime Minister of Montenegro to preside over this body also results from the powers and obligations prescribed by the provision of Article 6 of the Decree on the Government of Montenegro (Official Gazette of Montenegro, No. 080/08 of 26 December 2008, 014/17 of 3 March 2017, 028/18 of 27 April 2018), which stipulates that the Deputy Prime Minister directs and coordinates the work of ministries and other state administration bodies within the competence of the Commission for Economic Policy and Financial System to which, among other things, health care issues belong.
By establishing the National Coordination Body and its activities, the Coordination Body for the Prevention, Elimination and Eradication of Communicable Diseases has not ceased to operate.
The National Coordination Body was thus formed in accordance with the overall risks that increased and became complex day by day, with significant risks to the health and lives of citizens, then numerous socio-economic challenges, including many security aspects. Depending on the development and complexity of the situation, stronger and more comprehensive coordination and efficiency, the composition of the National Coordination Body has changed. Furthermore, the development of the situation required the urgent formation of five special operational staffs, formed by decisions of the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Policy and Financial System and one staff formed by the Minister of the Interior.
Within the National Coordination Body there are:
1. Operational staff for coordination of coronavirus prevention measures, headed by Prof. Dr Vesna Miranović, Director General of the Ministry of Health;
2. Operational staff for implementation of activities related to the return of Montenegrin citizens from abroad, headed by Dragan Pejanović, State Secretary of the Ministry of the Interior;
3. Operational staff to support the economy during coronavirus prevention measures, headed by Dragica Sekulić, Minister of Economy;
4. Operational staff for withdrawal and coordination of international assistance, headed by Dragana Radulović, Adviser to the Prime Minister;
5. Operational staff for donation management, headed by Radule Raonić, Adviser to the Prime Minister; and
6. Crisis Medical Staff, headed by Prof. Dr Ranko Lazović.
The complexity of the tasks and the way of proposing and making decisions can best be seen in the attached National Coordination Body organisational chart.
The National Coordination Body has so far successfully coordinated all activities of state institutions and bodies in confronting the coronavirus pandemic, which, according to a UNICEF survey is supported by 95% of citizens. Unjustified attempts to bring discredit on it for political reasons will not prevent the National Coordination Body from continuing to work effectively and successfully in the interest of all Montenegrin citizens in the coming period, with the aim of protecting the health and lives of citizens and confronting with the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic.
NATIONAL COORDINATION BODY FOR COMMUNICABLE DISEASES
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