Control of epidemic diseases as a constitutional duty of public authorities

Abstract

The control of epidemic diseases is a constitutional obligation of public authorities, detailed in ordinary legislation and executive acts. It is also subject to the regulations of international law, to which Poland is bound. With the announcement of the epidemic and then the SARS CoV-2 pandemic, the provisions of the Polish Constitution, in addition to the programmatic character given to them, also acquired an important practical value. The public authorities did not decide to declare a state of emergency, instead declaring first an epidemic emergency and then an epidemic state. In order to limit the spread of the virus, a number of restrictions were introduced, including restrictions on freedom of movement, the announcement of an order to cover the mouth and nose, the establishment of an order to maintain an appropriate distance, or limits on the number of people who can be in an enclosed space at the same time. Each of these orders and prohibitions directly touched the sphere of individual rights and freedoms, and while in the initial phase of the epidemic's development they seemed to enjoy public understanding, as time passed, their effectiveness, necessity and legality were increasingly questioned. The period of the coronavirus pandemic became the subject of research conducted in various scientific fields: medical, sociological, economic or legal. The present work is a consideration of a legal nature, supported by the results of public opinion polls on the subject of assessing the government's actions to combat the SARS CoV-2 epidemic