ABSTRACT
In view of the socioeconomic, political, and international implications of public health challenges, governments and health authorities at different levels strive to strengthen state capacity in disease prevention and control. This involves the development of necessary core capacities to detect, assess, notify and report disease events effectively. The severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) crisis underscores the need to establish a legal framework for tackling public health emergencies. As part of the government's transparency campaign, information on the current animal-borne epidemics, including foot and mouth disease, swine vesicular disease, and avian influenza, was no longer classified as state secrets A comparison of the hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) and H1N1 outbreaks helps us to gain a better understanding of China's capability of handling public health challenges in the post-SARS era. Unlike major illnesses such as HIV/AIDS and SARS, both HFMD and H1N1 viruses are relatively mild.
