The current pandemic is not a new phenomenon, but the spread rate of SARSCoV-2, which poses a direct threat to the life and health of citizens, is quite unprecedented. And while it was known that a pandemic is sure to emerge, nothing was done to prevent it. Hence the questions: why did the states not react much earlier, and didn’t the EU join at an earlier stage? What contributed to this passive attitude? And in the case of the EU, were political reasons to blame, or was it simply a lack of competence? The aim of the article is to present the actors involved and activities they undertook within their competences. For the purpose of consideration, for which the theoretical point of reference is the concept of multilevel governance, the thesis was adopted that the protection of public health requires joint actions, undertaken on many levels and jointly coordinated.