China is planning to formulate or revise a total of 17 health-related laws this year and next year to strengthen legal safeguards for public health, according to a report made public Monday.

The report was submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, for deliberation at its ongoing legislative session, which opened Sunday.

After years of hard work, a public health legal system involving over 30 laws has been basically set up in China, said Shen Chunyao, director of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee, when delivering to lawmakers the report on legislation and law revision work to strengthen safeguards for public health.

But the COVID-19 epidemic has exposed some problems in legislation and indicated the need for systematic law revisions and improvements, Shen said.

According to the report, aside from a decision on banning illegal wildlife trade passed at the previous NPC Standing Committee session and a revision to the law on the prevention and control of environmental pollution by solid waste expected to be passed at this session, the legislation plan called for prompt efforts to formulate the biosecurity law and revise the law on animal epidemic prevention.

Efforts should be made to expedite revising the wild animal conservation law and the frontier health and quarantine law, while revisions and improvements for the law on the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases, the emergency response law and others should be carefully assessed, according to the report.

Relevant improvements were also proposed for the draft civil code and the draft amendments to the criminal law, Shen said.

Lawmakers will deliberate the report in panel discussions Tuesday, according to the agenda.

The legislative session will run through Wednesday.