Regulations on Preparedness for and Response to Emergent Public Health Hazards

(chinadaily.com.cn)

Updated: 2014-06-18

Article 17 People’s governments at or above the county level shall strengthen the establishment of first-aid medical service networks, provide them with appropriate medications for patient treatment, technologies and equipment, and assign appropriate personnel to them, so as to improve the treatment and rescue ability of medical and health institutions to respond to various emergent hazards. The local people’s government at or above the level of a city divided into districts shall set up a specialized hospital of infectious diseases to meet the needs for preventing and treating such diseases, or designate a medical institution capable of preventing and treating infectious diseases to undertake related work.

Article 18 The competent health administrative department of the local people’s government at or above the county level shall offer regular training to a medical and health institution and its staff members in terms of the knowledge and skills needed for rapid response to any emergent hazard, organize medical and health institutions to conduct regular maneuvers for rapid response to the emergent hazard, and popularize the latest knowledge and advanced technologies.

Chapter III Reporting and Information Releasing

Article 19 The State shall establish a system for reporting the emergent hazard. The competent health administrative department of the State Council shall work out the norms for reporting the emergent hazard and set up a system for reporting the information on severe and emergent epidemic situations. Under one of the following circumstances, people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions or municipalities directly under the Central Government shall, within one hour upon receipt of reports, report to the competent health administrative department of the State Council: (1) outbreak or epidemic, or possible outbreak or epidemic, of infectious diseases; (2) occurrence or identification of large amount of aggregated cases from any disease with unknown reasons; (3) loss of bacterial strains or virus strains of infectious diseases; (4) occurrence or possible occurrence of severe food poisonings or occupational poisonings. The competent health administrative department of the State Council shall make an immediate report to the State Council on the emergent hazard which is likely to cause a significant impact on the general public.

Article 20 Upon identification of any of the circumstances specified in Article 19 of these Regulations, surveillance institutions, medical and health institutions and other relevant units related to the emergent hazard shall, within two hours, report to the local competent health administrative departments of the people’s governments at the county level. The competent health administrative departments receiving the reports shall, within two hours, report to the people’s governments at the same level, and, at the same time, report to the competent health administrative departments of the people’s government at the higher level and the competent health administrative department of the State Council. People’s governments at the county level shall, within two hours upon receipt of the reports, report to the people’s governments at the level of a city divided into districts or to the people’s governments at the next higher level. The people’s governments at the level of a city divided into districts shall, within two hours upon receipt of the reports, report to the people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions or municipalities directly under the Central Government.

Article 21 No unit or individual shall withhold the truth about, delay the report on, or make a false report on the emergent hazard, or incite other persons to do so.

Article 22 Local people’s governments and competent health administrative departments which have received reports on the emergent hazard shall, while making reports as required by these Regulations, organize immediate investigation, verification and confirmation of the reported matters, take necessary control measures and timely report the progress of their investigation.