Crisis resilience in the constitutional state: Providing the population with pharmaceuticals and diagnostics in the context of a (future) pandemic

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Sebastian Kluckert
• Subject Area: Public Law
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 542596695

In the context of a pandemic caused by a novel pathogen (such as SARS-CoV-2) resulting in a novel disease (such as COVID-19), it is crucial that innovative pharmaceuticals (including vaccines) and diagnostics are made available rapidly to those at risk, infected or ill. During a pandemic governmental authorities bear a special responsibility in ensuring the availability of healthcare goods and services. Certain healthcare goods, such as COVID-19 vaccines, may effectively be obtainable only through governmental channels for an extended period. Particularly, achieving the goal of the timely availability of innovative pharmaceuticals and diagnostics necessitates legal preparations referring to drug and medical device approvals and the provision of healthcare goods within existing healthcare structures. The overarching objective of this project is to provide legal contributions aimed at enhancing public health law for future pandemic emergencies - based on the experimental experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic which have to be evaluated. The inevitable future reform of this legal field should, on one hand, swiftly, securely and equitably make the necessary healthcare goods and services available to all those affected during a pandemic. On the other hand, the reform should minimize the societal and constitutional costs associated with an executive state of emergency regime. The project aims to identify, analyze and evaluate the measures taken to ensure the supply of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on this analysis, operational and concrete guidelines for the provision of pharmaceuticals (including vaccines) and diagnostics in pandemic emergencies or health crises will be developed.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants