Overview

• The updated International Health Regulations entered into force on 19 September 2025 and introduce a formal "pandemic emergency" category.
• The WHO Director-General can declare a pandemic emergency and issue time‑limited recommendations but cannot order lockdowns, vaccine mandates or border closures.
• Member states are required to bolster surveillance, laboratory and clinical capacities, designate a national authority, and develop capabilities to address misinformation.
• Germany has a cabinet‑approved bill to implement the rules that now goes to Bundestag and Bundesrat, detailing measures at airports and seaports and noting possible laboratory testing costs.
• Coverage underscores constitutional safeguards and court review for any rights‑limiting steps, and notes parallel work on a pandemic accord to improve equitable access to vaccines and other tools.