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Republic of the Philippines 5 20 0
Pl S ATE: JUN 15 %

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City ee

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House BILL No. 7006

Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

AN ACT
AMENDING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 11332, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE
“MANDATORY REPORTING OF NOTIFIABLE DISEASES AND HEALTH
EVENTS OF PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN ACT”

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Last year, Republic Act No. 11332 (R. A. No. 11332) otherwise known as the
Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health of Public Concern Act was
enacted into law an effective response system in compliance with the 2005
International Health Regulations (IHR) of the World Health Organization (WHO).

The said measure updated the 90-year old law Act No. 3573 on Reporting of
Communicable Diseases. R. A. No. 11332 law ensured the establishment and
maintenance of effective and efficient disease and surveillance and response
system for rapid containment and implementation of measures for disease
prevention and control.

The country's current response to controlling the spread of the Novel Corona Virus
of 2019 (NCOV) proves that our laws are still insufficient to address such kind of
disease outbreak despite President Rodrigo Duterte having formally declared a
state of public health emergency in the Philippines through Proclamation No. 922.

Accordingly, this measure proposes amendments to Republic Act No. 11332.
Some of the features of the proposal include: (1.) mandating the Philippine
National Police (PNP) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to assist the
DOH in its contact tracing efforts; (2.) establishing sub-national laboratories in all
DOH-run hospitals in the country which shall have the capacity to undertake
testing, diagnosis, control and prevention of infectious diseases; (3.) allowing the
local government units (LGUs) to establish their own laboratories accredited and

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approved by the DOH, and mandating all LGUs to establish their own
epidemiology and surveillance units; (4.) requiring the DOH to issue clear
guidelines on the systematic reporting and recording of notifiable diseases and
health events of public health concem; and (5.) requiring all public and private
institutions to provide necessary information in disease surveillance and other
epidemiologic investigations.

In view of the foregoing, the approval of this measure is most earnestly sought.

an] al

LUIS RAYMUNP “LRAY¢)F, VILLAFUERTE JR.,


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. Bat06

Introduced by HON. LUIS RAYMUND “LRAY” F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

AN ACT
AMENDING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 11332, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE
“MANDATORY REPORTING OF NOTIFIABLE DISEASES AND HEALTH
EVENTS OF PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN ACT”

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Section 6 of Republic Act No. 11332 is hereby amended to add the
following:

"SEC. 6. Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health Events of
Public Concern. — The DOH, through the Epidemiology Bureau, shall issue the
official list of institutionalized public health information system, disease surveillance
and response systems for mandatory reporting of notifiable diseases and health
events of public concern provided in Section 5 of this Act. This official list shall
include the Field Health Service Information System (FHSIS), the Philippine
Integrated Disease Surveillance Response (PIDSR) System with its Case-Based
Surveillance and Event based Surveillance, and other duly institutionalized public
health disease surveillance

and response systems of the DOH.

“Under this Act:
"xx

“(e) To perform their disease surveillance and response functions, authorized health
personnel from the DOH and its local counterparts have the statutory and regulatory
authority to enforce the following:

xx


“(6) ESTABLISHMENT OF SUB-NATIONAL LABORATORIES IN ALL DOH RUN
REGIONAL HOSPITALS IN THE COUNTRY WHICH SHALL HAVE THE
CAPACITY TO UNDERTAKE TESTING, DIAGNOSIS, CONTROL AND
PREVENTION OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES. LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS MAY
ALSO ESTABLISH THEIR OWN LABORATORIES AND/OR PARTNER WITH
PRIVATE HOSPITALS AND LABORATORIES IN THE CONDUCT OF
INFECTIOUS DISEASE SURVEILLANCE: PROVIDED, THAT THE
LABORATORIES SHALL BE DULY ACCREDITED AND APPROVED BY THE
DOH.

xx

“(H) ALL HOSPITALS, CLINICS, HEALTH FACILITIES, LABORATORIES,
RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS, WORKPLACES, SCHOOLS, PRISONS, PORTS,
AIRPORTS, COMMERCIAL ESTABLISHMENTS, AND RESIDENTIAL
COMMUNITIES ARE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE NECESSARY INFORMATION TO
AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL OF THE DOH AND OTHER AUTHORIZED
AGENCIES INCLUDING LOCAL COUNTERPARTS INVOLVED IN DISEASE
SURVEILLANCE INCLUDING CONTACT TRACING: PROVIDED, THAT SUCH
REQUIREMENT TO PROVIDE INFORMATION SHOULD BE EXEMPTED IN THE
PROVISION OF THE DATA PRIVACY ACT ON ACCESSIBILITY OF DATA;

“(I) THE DOH SHALL ESTABLISH HOTLINES AND OTHER FORMS OF ACCESS
WHERE THE PUBLIC CAN REPORT NOTIFIABLE DISEASES AND HEALTH
EVENTS OF PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN;

(J) THE DOH SHALL ISSUE CLEAR GUIDELINES ON THE SYSTEMATIC
REPORTING AND RECORDING OF NOTIFIABLE DISEASES AND HEALTH
EVENTS OF PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN, PARTICULARLY, ON THE NUMBER
OF CONFIRMED CASES, DEATHS, SUSPECTED AND PROBABLE CASES;
AND

“(K) THE PHILIPPINE NATIONAL POLICE AND ARMED FORCES OF THE
PHILIPPINES SHALL ASSIST THE DOH IN THE CONDUCT OF CONTACT
TRACING AND OTHER EPIDEMIOLOGIC INVESTIGATIONS WHERE THE
ASSISTANCE OF UNIFORMED PERSONNEL ARE NECESSARY."

SEC. 2. Section 7 of Republic Act No. 11332 is hereby amended to read as follows:

"The Secretary of Health shall have the authority to declare epidemics of
national and/or international concerns [except when the same threatens national
security In which case, the President of the Republic of the Philippines shall declare
a State of Public’ Health Emergency and mobilize govemmental and
nongovernmental agencies to respond to the threat.] IN WHICH CASE THE INTER-
AGENCY TASK FORCE FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF EMERGING INFECTIOUS
DISEASES (IATF-EID) CREATED UNDER EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 168, S. 2014
SHALL IMMEDIATELY CONVENE. THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF
THE PHILIPPINES SHALL HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO DECLARE A STATE OF
PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCIES UPON THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE
IATF 11EID OR UPON THE DECLARATION OF THE WORLD HEALTH
ORGANIZATION OF A PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY OF INTERNATIONAL


CONCERN. THE STATE OF PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY SHALL
AUTHORIZE THE PRESIDENT TO MOBILIZE GOVERNMENTAL AND
NONGOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES TO RESPOND TO THE THREAT, AND TO
EXERCISE OF MEASURES PROVIDED IN REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10121 WHEN A
STATE OF CALAMITY EXISTS.

"THE ‘ATF-EID SHALL, WITHIN NINETY (90) DAYS FROM THE
APPROVAL OF THIS ACT, FORMULATE A NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH
EMERGENCY STRATEGY TO ADDRESS PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCIES.
THIS STRATEGY SHALL PROVIDE FOR AN INTEGRATED POLICY
COORDINATION AND STRATEGIC DIRECTION WITH RESPECT TO ALL
MATTERS RELATED TO NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH AND MEDICAL
PREPAREDNESS, AND EXECUTION AND DEPLOYMENT OF NATIONAL
RESPONSE BEFORE, DURING, AND FOLLOWING PUBLIC HEALTH
EMERGENCIES. THE STRATEGY SHALL ALSO INCLUDE THE
IDENTIFICATION OF QUARANTINE OR ISOLATION FACILITIES IN EVERY
PROVINCE.

“THE IATF-EID SHALL FORMULATE AND IMPLEMENT A NATIONAL
PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY PLAN IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE NATIONAL
PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY STRATEGY AS SOON AS THE PRESIDENT
DECLARES THE EXISTENCE OF THE STATE OF PUBLIC HEALTH
EMERGENCY.
xin

SEC. 3. Section 8 of Republic Act No. 11332 is hereby amended to read as follows:

“Section 8. Establishment of Epidemiology and Surveillance Units. - The
DOH [in coordination with the LGUs,] shall ensure that the Epidemiology and
Surveillance Units (ESUs) are established and functional in all levels of the DOH
and its local counterparts, and in public and private health facilities and laboratories,
as well as ports and airports in ah provinces, cities and municipalities throughout the
country.
ALL PROVINCES, CITIES AND MUNICIPALITIES SHALL ESTABLISH THEIR
OWN EPIDEMIOLOGY AND SURVEILLANCE UNITS WHICH SHALL CLOSELY
COORDINATE WITH THE ESUS OF THE DOH.

"The ESU shall capture and verify all reported notifiable diseases and health
events of public health concer; provide timely, accurate, and reliable epidemiologic
information to appropriate agencies; conduct disease surveillance and response
activities; coordinate needed response; and facilitate capacity building in the field of
epidemiology, disease surveillance and response at the Epidemiology Bureau.

"All ESUs OF THE DOH AND LGUS shall have trained required human
resource complement and provision of adequate resources, including equipment,
logistics, communication, transportation, laboratory supplies and reagents, personal
protective equipment and health insurance, to effectively perform their disease
surveillance and response functions.”


SEC. 4. Section 9 of Republic Act No. 11332 is hereby amended to read as
follows:

"SEC. 9. Prohibited Acts. - The following shall be prohibited under this Act:
"x
“(F) CREATING, PERPETUATING, OR SPREADING FALSE INFORMATION
REGARDING AN EPIDEMIC OR PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY ON SOCIAL
MEDIA AND OTHER PLATFORMS, SUCH INFORMATION HAVING NO VALID
OR BENEFICIAL EFFECT ON THE POPULATION, AND ARE CLEARLY
GEARED TO PROMOTE CHAOS, PANIC, ANARCHY, FEAR, OR CONFUSION;
AND THOSE PARTICIPATING IN CYBER INCIDENTS THAT MAKE USE OR
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE CURRENT CRISIS SITUATION TO PREY ON THE
PUBLIC THROUGH SCAMS, PHISHING, FRAUDULENT EMAILS, OR OTHER
SIMILAR ACTS;

“(G) DISCRIMINATING AGAINST HEALTH WORKERS, INFECTED AND
RECOVERED PERSONS SUCH AS PROMOTING AND ENCOURAGING
STIGMA, INCITING VIOLENCE, SUBJECTING THEM TO PROFILING,
DETENTION, OR VERBAL OR PHYSICAL HARASSMENT; AND

“(H) INTENTIONALLY DECLARING OR REPORTING FALSE INFORMATION ON
INFECTIOUS DISEASES. "
DO

SEC 5. Separability Clause. - Any portion or provision of this Act that is declared
unconstitutional shall not have the effect of nullifying other portions or provisions
hereof as long as such remaining portions can still subsist and be given effect in
their entirety.

SEC. 6. Repealing Clause. - All laws, ordinances, rules, regulations, other
issuances or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with this Act, are hereby repealed
or modified accordingly.

SEC. 7. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication
in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,