New Icelandic disease control laws take effect
Tuesday 1st September 2026 on 17:45 in
Iceland
New infectious disease control laws took effect in Iceland on Tuesday, replacing legislation from 1997, mbl.is reports. The new law introduces several changes to how disease prevention measures are administered.
The legislation was comprehensively reviewed partly in response to experience from the Covid-19 pandemic. The explanatory notes say there was a particular need to reassess the administration of disease prevention and the use of public measures.
During the pandemic, extensive public disease control measures were imposed on the general population for the first time since the previous law came into force. A working group was appointed in June 2021 to prepare a draft of the new legislation.
The role of Iceland’s chief epidemiologist is now defined more clearly. The chief epidemiologist is appointed by the minister for five years at a time and is responsible for implementing disease prevention measures under the minister’s overall authority, while continuing to work within the Directorate of Health. Guðrún Aspelund currently holds the position.
A new epidemic committee has also been established. Among other duties, it will make recommendations to the minister on public disease prevention measures when socially dangerous diseases emerge. The existing disease prevention council has been abolished.
The new law more clearly defines which diseases fall within its scope and classifies them according to severity. It also covers unusual or unexpected events that could have serious health consequences in Iceland or internationally.
The chief epidemiologist will continue to have the authority to take measures against the risk of transmission from individuals, including health examinations, quarantine and isolation, provided the conditions set out in the law are met.
Parliament approved the law on April 21. At the same time, a more than century-old 1920 law authorising the government to ban imports of goods considered capable of causing infection has been repealed. The full text of the new law is available on the parliament’s website.