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Starting today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (hereinafter - CDC) will start their work. They will be created in all oblasts of Ukraine and Kyiv. These centers will be fully responsible for their own region — from routine monitoring of indicators, to forecasting, detecting emergencies, outbreaks and responding to them.

In accordance with the resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of February 17, 2021 No. 106, CDC will be created on the basis of laboratory centers of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. Specialists from Regional Public Health Centers will be transferred to the CDC to strengthen their capacity in communication, prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases, as well as to promote vaccination against both routine and COVID-19. The centers will include hazard monitoring and response departments and rapid response teams, and their leaders will have the status of chief state sanitary doctors of the regions.

The Center for Public Health of Ukraine, as the main expert institution, will provide organizational and methodological support for the work and coordination of the activities of the CDC network within six specific areas: creation of an information fund and provision of epidemiological surveillance, provision of laboratory support by reference laboratories, coordination of areas for biosecurity and biosafety, training of personnel, support of preventive programs and response to hazards.

CDC will interact with all institutions of the oblast that work in the field of public health — departments of regional state administration health departments, departments of education, departments of environmental protection and ecology, departments of the State Emergency Service, etc.

The main functions of the CDC are to provide epidemiological surveillance, sanitary and epidemic well-being of the population, protection of the population from infectious diseases, prevention of noncommunicable diseases, support of biological safety and biological protection, epidemiological surveillance, immunoprophylaxis, educational work on a healthy lifestyle and prevention of risk factors, fight against antimicrobial resistance, respond to health hazards and emergencies in the field of health care, etc.

This concept corresponds to the best international practices. Similar structures work on this principle in the leading countries of the world.

So, a modern system of responding to health threats and anti-epidemic protection is starting to work in Ukraine.