CHINA. Decree No. 17 of
The
following are among the principal provisions of this Decree, which implements
the Law of
Chapter 1. General principles (Secs. 1-6). Under Sec. 2, the State is to accord priority
to the prevention of communicable diseases and is to make governments at all
levels responsible for including, in socioeconomic development programmes, the
objectives of preventing and treating communicable diseases and for organizing
cooperation between all services concerned.
Chapter II. Prevention (Secs. 7-33). This Chapter includes provisions
on: the development of knowledge on and
the formulation of measures for the prevention of communicable diseases (Sec.
7); the control of rodents, insect pests, etc. (Sec. 8); the hygiene of
drinking-water, which must conform to the applicable State sanitary standards
and be protected against sources of pollution (Secs. 9-10); preventive
vaccination, particularly for children of school age (Secs. 11-12); the
prevention of the spread of communicable diseases of iatrogenic, nosocomial, or
laboratory origin (Secs. 14-15); the storage, handling, and transportation of
bacterial and viral pathogens (Secs. 16-17) (Sec. 16 classifies these into
three groups); imposition of certain measures (Sec. 18) (this Section lays down
that persons who are suffering from or are carriers of the pathogen of an
infectious disease (including AIDS) in one of three specified groups are to be
subject to isolation and/or treatment measures, as necessary, and may not
recommence their activities until they have been certified to be non-contagious
by the competent medical care and health care agencies); polluted water (Secs.
21-22); the obligation, on the part of blood banks and units engaged in the
manufacture of biological products, to comply with the relevant regulations
issued by the administrative services responsible for health attached to the
State Council, and to assure the quality of blood and blood products so as to
avoid any contamination, particularly by the AIDS virus (Sec. 26); the
prevention of the transmission of zoonoses, notably rabies (Secs. 28-29);
measures applicable to regions that constitute or may constitute endemic areas
(Secs. 30-32); and the indemnification of persons exposed to disease pathogens
at their workplace (Sec. 33).
Chapter
III. Reports and notifications in the
event of epidemics (Secs. 34-43). This Chapter includes information on the time
intervals allotted for the notification of cases or suspected cases of
specified communicable diseases, including AIDS, and of carriers of the pathogens
of these diseases, the authorities to whom such notifications are to be made,
and the reports to be submitted to the specified services. Sec. 43 lays down that medical staff may not
divulge the name, address, and case history of persons suffering from specified
diseases (including persons suffering from AIDS or who are infected by HIV) nor
the names and addresses of members of their family, without the prior agreement
of the administrative services responsible for health attached to governments at
the district or higher level.
Chapter IV. Control (Secs. 44-58). Sec. 45 lays down that control measures in
respect of AIDS are to be applied in accordance with the relevant regulations
issued by the State Council. Under Sec.
48, persons in close contact with persons who are suffering from, inter alia,
AIDS are required to undergo medical examinations and preventive measures in
accordance with the applicable provisions.
Sec. 52 indicates the prevention and control measures to be adopted by
specified services in areas in which there has been an outbreak or epidemic of
a communicable disease. Sec. 54
indicates the circumstances in which emergency measures, as provided for in
Sec. 25 of the Law, must be taken. Sec.
55 indicates the procedures for the disposal of the bodies of deceased persons
who were suffering (at the time of death) from specified diseases, including
AIDS.
Chapter V. Surveillance (Secs. 59-65). Secs. 60 and 62, respectively, indicate
the functions of inspectors responsible for the surveillance and control of the
communicable diseases referred to in Sec. 33 of the Law, and of control
officers responsible for the control of the prevention of treatment of the
communicable diseases referred to in Sec. 34 of the Law.
Chapter VI. Penal responsibility (Secs. 66-72). This Chapter establishes various
penalities and other measures to be imposed in the event of contraventions
against the provisions laid down in this Decree.
Chapter
VII. Supplementary provisions (Secs.
73-76). Sec. 73 defines various
terms for the purpose of the Law and this Decree. Sec. 74 empowers the governments of the provinces and autonomous
regions, and municipalities under the direct jurisdiction of the central
government, to issue provisions for the implementation of the Law and this
Decree.