Criteria and requirements for disease elimination and eradication
| Biological criteria | Social and political criteria |
|---|---|
| Availability of an effective intervention ie a drug or vaccine. | Disease must be recognised to be of public health importance. |
| Diagnostic test with adequate sensitivity and specificity. | Eradication must be widely perceived to be a worthy goal. |
| Absence of an environmental or animal reservoir. | Technically feasible intervention must be found to be effective in a geographical region. |
| Political commitment must be gained at the highest level including potentially a World Health Assembly resolution. | |
| There must be an advocacy plan for the global, regional and national level. |