Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines some of the health issues that have been most frequently discussed in security terms but also draws attention to others that have not yet come to be widely viewed in security terms but that share some of the features of established health security issues. It explores the measures that have been put in place at both the national and supranational levels to address health security challenges. The book discusses some of the controversies that have emerged around the linking of health and security, including the implications for human rights, the potential distortion of the global health agenda, and the possible obstacles to cooperation that can emerge as states increasingly come to view diseases in national security terms.