Throughout history and in modern times, epidemics have been the leading cause of death. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2 has caused a confirmed amount of 6,873,477 deaths and 760,360,956 cases worldwide, most being in Europe, the Western Pacific, and the Americas. Like other diseases COVID-19 is most commonly spread through close contact with an infected person, being in poorly ventilated areas, and touching one’s eyes, nose, or mouth after coming into contact with infected surfaces. As of now, the four most common ways to combat this infectious disease have been through vaccines, masks, sanitizer, and washing hands. While this pandemic has caused grave effects worldwide, some countries have been successful in mitigating the disease. With aid from the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), Burundi published a communication campaign promoting hand washing and decreased the price of soap to stop transmission. New Zealand committed to an elimination strategy that ensured social distancing and travel restrictions, allowing for only 102 cases and 0 deaths. There are extreme issues with vaccine distribution in developing countries. 90% of people in 67 developing countries cannot receive the COVID-19 vaccine since developed countries, which hold 14% of the world’s population, claimed 53% of all COVID-19 vaccines including all Moderna vaccines and 96% of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines. In addition to COVID-19, epidemics such as Ebola and vaping pose extreme threats to modern society. From 2014-2016, there have been a confirmed total of 11,325 deaths and 28,652 cases of the Ebola virus, being most prevalent in Africa. Vaping and e-cigarettes are considered an epidemic by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Sales are expected to reach $40 billion by the end of 2023, youth use rose from 1800% from 2011-2019, and causes lung cancer which had 2.21 million cases and 1.8 million deaths in 2020.
To alleviate the spread of epidemics, especially COVID-19, the United Nations (UN) has implemented various measures. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Foundation established the Solidarity Response Fund on March 13, 2020, to address immediate health needs and aid countries to effectively respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, raising over $150 million to help these countries. The UN launched a $2 billion Humanitarian Response Plan aiming to stop the virus with aid from UN organizations as well as non-governmental organizations coordinated by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) with plans developed by the International Red Cross. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization developed the Global Education Coalition to ensure distance education was more accessible. In 2016, WHO launched the Health Emergencies Program, aiming to minimize the health consequences of outbreaks and emergencies by helping countries strengthen capacities to detect, prevent and respond to emergencies, diminish the risk of high-threat diseases and infectious hazards, detect and assess emergency health threats and informing public health discussion making, responding rapidly and effectively to emergencies. In response to the vaping epidemic, the UN health agency called for regulating the use of e-cigarettes and sales, especially to minors.
The Republic of India strongly supports epidemic prevention efforts. With the second largest population in the world, India has accounted for 16% of COVID-19 cases. The government was engaged and critically involved with the COVID-19 outbreak, working to lessen cases by involving medical associations, nurses, non-governmental organizations, police forces (including paramilitary), and the public. During the peak of the pandemic, social distancing and lockdown rules were strictly enforced and endorsed the use of vaccines. As of 2023, over 67% of citizens are vaccinated against COVID-19. At its peak in May of 2021, there were 2,738,957 confirmed cases and 28,982 deaths from COVID-19 in India. Due to prevention measures, that number has been brought down to 1,464 cases and 8 deaths as of March 13, 2023.
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