Covid-19 has joined the list of notifiable diseases since July 1, according to the Official Journal.
- Covid-19 is now considered a notifiable disease, along with 36 other pathologies.
- Doctors have the obligation to transmit the cases to the Regional Health Agency (ARS) and the health authorities put an end to the TousAntiCovid application.
- These changes occur in a favorable epidemic context, marked by very low viral circulation in mainland France and overseas.
The Covid-19 epidemic is evolving, but so are the information systems that accompany it.
Indeed, while the Covid-19 continues to circulate to a lesser extent with approximately 933 positive cases per day, it is now one of the 37 notifiable diseases (MDO) according to the decree of June 30 published the next day in the Official Journal.
Covid-19: surveillance is changing
In 2021, 36 diseases were reportable (MDO). Among them, 34 are infectious diseases and 2 are non-infectious (mesothelioma and lead poisoning in minor children), according to Public Health France.
The inclusion or removal of a disease from the MDO list is made by decision of the Minister responsible for Health by decree issued after consulting the High Council for Public Health (HCSP).
From now on, for the Covid-19, the surveillance adapts: “Covid-19 requires the maintenance of special epidemiological surveillance at the national level, in the same way as other diseases. For this reason, alternative solutions are put in place to ensure the continuity of the production of epidemiological indicators.”, indicates Public Health France.
This decree provides in particular for the cessation of the processing of personal data from the screening information system based on the results of RT-PCR tests and antigenic tests.
The doctor must communicate the Covid cases to the ARS
In concrete terms, this inclusion on the list of MDOs means that, as with other infectious diseases (such as dengue fever and measles), the doctor or biologist who made the diagnosis must report the cases to the Regional Health Agency (ARS). ). He will also have to provide all the information necessary for the implementation of investigation and intervention measures, in particular the identity and address of the patient, note our colleagues from Top Health:
“He then reports to the ARS doctor to decide on any individual and collective preventive measures to prevent the spread of the disease and to carry out investigations to find out the origin of the contamination.“.
In addition, information systems are changing. Thus, the TousAntiCovid application, which allowed the follow-up of contact cases via the smartphone and was used to identify health passes, will disappear.
“These developments are part of a process of standardizing the surveillance of Covid-19 and its gradual integration among the respiratory epidemics monitored routinely. This integrated surveillance strategy for acute respiratory infections offers a global approach to acute respiratory pathologies, the main ones being Covid-19, influenza and bronchiolitis.“, explain Public Health France.
