It is time to think beyond vaccines
This article, originally published in Spanish in “El País” –https://elpais.com/ciencia/2020-12-08/es-tiempo-de-pensar-mas-alla-de-las-vacunas-y-no-queda-mucho.html?ssm=TW_CM_MAT-, sets out a future scenario in which a percentage of the population will be vaccinated against COVID-19, and the gap that may arise between these and those who are unwilling or unable to achieve immunity through vaccination.
Should the vaccination be coercive?
The announcement made a few days ago by Pfizer has raised realistic expectations that a coronavirus vaccine will be available soon. Under these conditions, a fundamental question urgently needs to be addressed: should it be coercive? Iñigo de Miguel Beriain -PANELFIT coordinator_ addressed this important question in this opinion paper.
How to avoid a second lockdown?
English version of the news published in “El País” (https://elpais.com/ciencia/2020-10-28/como-evitar-un-segundo-confinamiento.html) by PANELFIT Coordinator Iñigo de Miguel Beriain.
Also available in German:
Available in Portuguese:
Lección de salud pública
Iñigo de Miguel Beriain participated in a TV report devoted to COVID ethical and legal issues, including privacy issues. It was broadcasted on 2020-04-25. EiTB television (Basque Country).
Articles in mass media
Iñigo de Miguel Beriain published several articles in mass media (in Spanish):
- Triaje: lo que deberíamos hacer y lo que podemos hacer. Diario Médico. Marzo 2020
- Una decisión que condena a miles de personas a un desenlace fatal. EL MUNDO. 13 marzo 2020.
- ¿Estaba nuestro ordenamiento jurídico preparado para afrontar una crisis de salud pública? Revista del Consejo General de Abogacía española. Abril 2020. P. 21 y ss.
Podcast
Iñigo de Miguel was interviewed by “La Tengo Pequeña” programme: LTP. Podcast. Ep81 – Dónde y cómo dibujar la frontera entre la protección de datos individuales y el bien común, con Iñigo De Miguel profesor de investigación en Ikerbasque, 9 de abril de 2020.
Journalistic articles
Iñigo de Miguel contributed to several journalistic articles where his opinion was quoted, namely:
- Expertos en privacidad admiten que la crisis permite un uso excepcional de datos personales, Carta publicada en varios medios, como EL PAÍS, entre otros por Iñigo de Miguel Beriain.
- Soldados de esta guerra: ancianos con miedo ante un enemigo que no se ve. 5 de abril de 2020
PANELFIT members participated in public initiatives related to data protection issues in policy making, namely:
- The coordinator of the PANELFIT project, Carlos María Romeo Casabona acted as the Scientific Coordinator of the “Informe del Ministerio de Sanidad sobre los aspectos éticos en situaciones de pandemia: El SARS-CoV-2 (Report by the Ministry of Health about the ethical issues of pandemic situations: SARS-COV-2)”.
- Gianclaudio Malgieri published (together with Giovanni Comande and Denise Amram an article entitled ‘Raccogliere piu dati si puo: c’e la legge’, *Corriere della Sera *(4 April 2020) and another article entitled: ‘The democracy of emergency at the time of the coronavirus: the virtues of privacy’, *Opinio Juris in comparatione, *preprint (April 2020)
- Carlos Romeo PANELFIT coordinator was interviewed in EL PAIS, about the possible investigation with healthy volunteers who would be inoculated with SARS-CoV-2.
More than 60 experts, including researchers from the PANELFIT, call on the Spanish government to act on the “private initiatives” that use COVID-19 apps for profit.
DATA PROTECTION LAW AND THE COVID-19 OUTBREAK
The outbreak of COVID-19 and subsequent initiatives and policy measures trigger many crucial privacy and data protection law issues. This page share useful resources in this crucial matter.
Experts in privacy admit that the crisis allows for an exceptional use of personal data. Link to the article in Spanish.
COVID-19 IMMUNITY PASSPORT: Scientifically viable? Legal? Ethical?
Interview with Iñigo de Miguel -PANELFIT Co-Coordinator- on the SER radio station. Available in Spanish.
We began to hear from experts and political leaders the idea of implementing an immunity passport for COVID-19, a document containing our medical data and certifying whether or not we are immune to the virus and which allows or limits our movements, activities, work.
But do we know enough about coronavirus immunity today to implement such a measure? We have a scientific and health debate ahead of us, but also an ethical and legal one.