Republic of the Philippines pare: du 29 a
House of Representatives TIME: 21am OY
Quezon City, Metra Manila

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No. 7156

INTRODUCED BY
REP. ALFRED VARGAS

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

Republic Act No. 11332, otherwise known as the “Mandatory
Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health Events of Public Health Concern
Act”, provides for mechanisms necessary for an effective response system in
compliance with the 2005 International Health Regulations (IHR) of the
World Health Organization.

However, with the confirmed local transmission of the Corona Virus
Disease (COVID-19) in the country, there are provisions in the law that need
revision and further strengthening especially on more aggressive government
efforts and interventions.

‘This bill seeks to require the Department of Health to issue clear
guidelines on the systematic reporting and recording of notifiable diseases
and health events of public health concern. Furthermore, it shall also
require all public and private institutions to provide necessary information
in disease surveillance and other epidemiological investigations.

In view of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this bill is earnestly

sought.
ALFRED ie


Republic of the Byjlippines
House of Representatives
Quezon City, Metro Manila

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No. 7156

INTRODUCED BY
REP. ALFRED VARGAS

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 Eventl0 based
Surveillance, and other duly institutionalized public health disease
surveillance and response systems of the DOH.

"Under this Act:
cx
“(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:

“x

"(6) ESTABLISHMENT OF SUB-NATIONAL LABORATORIES IN ALL DOH2


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.

“(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."

SECTION 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
governmental 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 EMERGENCY UPON THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE
IATF-EID 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 IATF-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
FACILITI 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.

SECTION 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 concern: 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."

SECTION 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:
"xx

"(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.

SECTION 5. Separability Cause. - 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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,