The SARS Commission second interim report : Second interim report : SARS and public health legislation

The Commission recommends amendments to the Health Protection and Promotion Act to clarify the ability of medical officers of health to share, with appropriate safeguards, personal health information where necessary to protect the public against the spread of infections. [...] Machinery must be put in place to ensure the actual and apparent independence of the Chief Medical Officer of Health in decisions around outbreak management and his or her ability, when necessary, to communicate directly with the public.22 The Commission recommended that the Chief Medical Officer of Health be given independence in respect of medical matters, with the right and the duty to report d [...] It’s also a question of ensuring that the Chief Medical Officer of Health can get the job done, can fulfill the delivery of the mandatory public health programmes by the local units and carry out the responsibilities of the Chief Medical Officer of Health under the Health Protection and Promotion Act. [...] Should be accountable to the Minister of Health with the independent duty and authority to communicate directly with the public by reports to the Legislative Assembly and the public whenever deemed necessary by the Chief Medical Officer of Health. [...] This kind of arrangement works well in the justice system where the local Crown Attorney is the agent of the Attorney General, and where the regional senior judge exercises in their region the powers of the Chief Justice, subject to the direction of the Chief Justice.