KATHMANDU: The Ministry of Health and Population is mulling over proposing to the Council of Ministers to declare state of public health emergency in the country following a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in the country.

Section 48 (2) of the Public Health Service Act states that if public health disaster occurs in more than one province, the Government of Nepal may declare state of public health emergency.

“Today, we discussed the possibility and necessity of declaration of public health emergency,” Gunaraj Lohani, who heads the COVID-19 Incident Command System at the MoHP, told THT.

As per the Health Sector Emergency Response Plan, the government can declare state of public health emergency when COVID-19 cases in the country cross 2,000. Nepal COVID count is already 2,300.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on June 4, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.