The purpose of Germany’s Infection Protection Act (IfSG), which came into force in 2001, is to prevent communicable diseases in humans, to detect infections at an early stage, and to prevent their further spread.
The participation and cooperation of federal, state and local authorities, physicians, veterinarians, hospitals, scientific institutions and other stakeholders is essential, and should be established and supported in accordance with the current state of medical and epidemiological science and technology. The responsibility of the owners and managers of community facilities, food establishments, health facilities, and individuals in the prevention of communicable diseases is to be clarified and promoted. The IfSG regulates which infectious diseases must be reported in the event of suspicion, disease or death, as well as which laboratory diagnostic evidence of pathogens must be reported.
