Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases (Amended in 2013)
Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases (Amended in 2013)
Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases (Amended in 2013)
Order of the President of the People's Republic of China No. 5
June 29, 2013
(Adopted at the 6th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the 7th People's Congress on February 21, 1989; revised at the 11th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the 10th National People's Congress on August 28, 2004; and amended according to Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on Amending 12 Laws including the Cultural Relics Protection Law of the People's Republic of China at the 3rd Meeting of the Standing Committee of the 12th National People's Congress on June 29, 2013)
Chapter I General Provisions
Chapter II Infectious Disease Prevention
Chapter III Reporting on, Releasing Information on and Announcing the Epidemic Situation
Chapter IV Control of Epidemic Situation
Chapter V Medical Treatment
Chapter VI Supervision and Management
Chapter VII Safeguard Measures
Chapter VIII Legal Liabilities
Chapter IX Supplementary Provisions
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 This Law is enacted in order to prevent, control and put an end to the outbreak and spread of infectious diseases and to ensure the health of the people and public sanitation.
Article 2 With respect to prevention and treatment of infectious diseases, the state implements a policy of putting emphasis on prevention, combining prevention with treatment, exercising classified control, and relying on science and the masses.
Article 3 The infectious diseases governed by this Law are divided into Classes A, B and C.
Infectious diseases under Class A are plague and cholera.
Infectious diseases under Class B are infectious SARS, AIDS, viral hepatitis, poliomyelitis, highly pathogenic avian influenza, measles, epidemic hemorrhagic fever, rabies, epidemic encephalitis B, dengue fever, anthrax, bacillary and amebic dysentery, pulmonary tuberculosis, typhoid and paratyphoid, epidemic cerebrospinal meningitis, pertussis, diphtheria, infant tetanus, scarlet fever, brucellosis, gonorrhoea, syphilis, leptospirosis, schistosomiasis and malaria.
Infectious diseases under Class C are influenza, epidemic parotitis, rubella, acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis, leprosy epidemic and endemic typhus, kala-azar, echinococcosis, filariasis, and infectious diarrhea other than cholera, bacillary and amebic dysentery, typhoid and paratyphoid.
The administrative department for health under the State Council may, according to the outbreak, prevalence and extent of harm of the infectious diseases, decide to increase, decrease or adjust the class B and class C versions of infectious diseases and publish the same.
Article 4 With respect to the infectious SARB, pulmonary anthrax in anthrax and highly pathogenic avian influenza that infect human beings, included in the infectious diseases under Class B, the measures for prevention and control of infectious diseases under Class A, as mentioned in this Law, shall be taken. With respect to the other infectious diseases under Class B and the infectious diseases the cause for the outbreak of which are uncertain and for which the measures for prevention and control of infectious diseases under Class A, as mentioned in this Law, need to be taken, the health administration department under the State Council shall, report the matter to the State Council for approval before making an announcement and take the measures.
Where it is necessary to lift the prevention and control measures adopted in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph for infectious diseases of A class, the matter shall be reported by the administrative department for health under the State Council to the State Council for approval and thereafter published.
With respect to the other endemic infectious diseases, which are common and multiple in their own administrative areas, the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government may, in light of the actual situations, decide to control them the way they do with respect to the infectious diseases under Class B or C, make announcements, and report the matter to the health administration department under the State Council for the record.
Article 5 People's governments at various levels shall direct the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases.
People's governments at the county level or above shall draw up program for prevention and treatment of infectious diseases and arrange for their implementation, and establish a sound system for prevention and control of diseases, medical treatment and supervision and management for prevention and treatment of infectious diseases.
Article 6 The health administration department under the State Council shall be in charge of the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases as well as exercising supervision and management over such diseases nationwide. The health administration departments under the local people's governments at the county level or above shall be in charge of the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases as well as exercising supervision and management over such diseases within their own administrative areas.
The other departments under the people's governments at the county level or above shall be in charge of the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases within the scope of their respective duties.
The prevention and treatment of infectious diseases in the People's Liberation Army shall be carried out in compliance with this Law and the relevant regulations of the state and shall be supervised and controlled by the competent authorities in charge of health in the Army.
Article 7 Institutions of disease prevention and control at all levels shall do the work of monitoring and forecasting infectious diseases, and of making epidemiological investigation and reporting on epidemic situation as well as the work of preventing and controlling other diseases.
Medical institutions shall do the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases that is related to medical treatment and the work of preventing infectious diseases within their own responsibility areas. Medical institutions in urban communities and rural areas at the grass-roots level shall, under the direction of institutions of disease prevention and control, do the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases for the corresponding urban communities and rural areas at the grass-roots level.
Article 8 The state develops modern medical science and such traditional medical science as traditional Chinese medicine and pharmacology, and supports and encourages scientific research in prevention and treatment of infectious diseases with a view to raising the scientific and technological level of preventing and treating infectious diseases.
The state supports and encourages international cooperation in preventing and treating infectious diseases.
Article 9 The state supports and encourages units and individuals to participate in the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases. People's governments at all level shall improve relevant systems to facilitate the units and individuals' participation in such activities as publicity and education in the importance of prevention and treatment of infectious diseases, report on epidemic situation, voluntary services and donation.
Residents and villagers' committees shall get the residents or villagers organized to participate in prevention and control of infectious diseases in the urban communities and rural areas.
Article 10 The state conducts health education in respect of infectious disease prevention. The news media shall publicize gratis for the public good the importance of prevention and treatment of infectious diseases and public sanitation.
Schools of various kinds at different levels shall disseminate among their students knowledge on health and on infectious disease prevention.
Medical colleges and universities shall improve education on and research in preventive medicine and conduct education on and training in preventive medicine among the students and people working for prevention and treatment of infectious diseases, in order to provide technical assistance to the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases.
Institutions of disease prevention and controls and medical institutions shall regularly conduct among their staff members training in the knowledge and skills of prevention and treatment of infectious diseases.
Article 11 Units and individuals that have made remarkable achievements in or contributions to the work of prevention and treating infectious diseases shall be commended or awarded.
Persons who contact diseases are disabled or die due to participation in the work of preventing and treating infectious diseases shall be subsidized or compensated in accordance with relevant regulations.
Article 12 All units and individuals within the territory of the People's Republic of China shall accept the preventive and control measures taken by institutions of disease prevention and control and medical institutions for investigation, testing, collection of samples of infectious diseases and for isolated treatment of such diseases, and they shall provide truthful information about the diseases. Institutions of disease prevention and controls and medical institutions shall not divulge any information or materials relating to personal privacy.
Where health administration departments and other relevant departments, or institutions of disease prevention and control and medical institutions infringe upon the lawful rights and interests of any units or individuals when exercising administrative control or taking preventive and control measures in violation of law, the units or individuals concerned may apply for administrative reconsideration or initiate legal proceedings according to law.
Chapter II Infectious disease prevention
Article 13 People's governments at all levels shall arrange for mass health activities, conduct health education regarding infectious disease prevention, promote a civilized and healthy way of life, enhance the awareness of the public in the importance of prevention and treatment of infectious diseases and their ability of coping with such diseases, improve environmental sanitation and eliminate the hazards of rodents and vector organisms such as mosquitoes and flies.
Administrative departments for agriculture, water conservancy and forestry under the people's governments at all levels shall, in accordance with the division of their duties, take charge of directing and coordinating efforts to eliminate the hazards of rodents and schistosomiasis from the farmlands, lake regions, rivers, livestock farms and forest regions as well as the hazards of other animals and vector organisms that transmit infectious diseases. Administrative departments for railways, communications and civil aviation shall take charge of coordinating efforts to eliminate the hazards of rodents and vector organisms such as mosquitoes and flies from the means of transport and relevant places.
Article 14 Local people's governments at all levels shall establish or reconstruct public sanitary facilities in a planned way, improve the sanitary condition of drinking water, and take measures for the innocent treatment of sewage, wasted and feces.
Article 15 The state practices a planned prophylactic vaccination system. the health administration department under the State Council and such departments under the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government shall, in accordance with the requirements of prevention and control of infectious diseases, draw up plans for prophylactic vaccination against infectious diseases and coordinate efforts for their implementation.
Vaccines used for prophylactic vaccination shall conform to the quality standards of the state. The state practices a system by which certificates are issued to children who have received prophylactic vaccination. The prophylactic vaccination under the item of the state immune program shall be free of charge. Medical institutions, institutions of disease prevention and control and guardians to children shall cooperate with each other to ensure that children receive prophylactic vaccination in time. The measures in this regard shall be formulated by The State Council.
Article 16 The state and the community shall show concern about and help the infectious disease patients, pathogen carriers and suspected infectious victims and make it possible for them to receive timely medical treatment. No units or individuals shall discriminate against infectious disease patients, pathogen carriers and suspected infectious victims.
The infectious disease patients, pathogen carriers and suspected infectious victims shall, before they are cured or cleared of suspicion, be barred from jobs which laws of administrative regulations or the health administration department under the State Council prohibit them from doing because of the likelihood of causing the spread of infectious diseases.
Article 17 The state establishes the system for monitoring infectious diseases.
The health administration department under the State Council shall draw up plans and schemes of the state for monitoring infectious diseases. The health administration departments under the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government shall, in accordance with the said plans and schemes, draw up plans and work schemes for monitoring infectious diseases in their own administrative areas.
Institutions of disease prevention and controls at different levels shall monitor the outbreak and prevalence of infectious diseases as well as the factors affecting their outbreak and prevalence; and they shall monitor the infectious diseases which have broken out abroad but have not yet broken out at home or have newly broken out at home.
Article 18 Institutions of disease prevention and controls at all levels shall, in the work of prevention and control of infectious diseases, perform the following duties:
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