Sec. 2. Powers and Functions. — The Secretary of
Health is hereby granted such powers and authority as would be
necessary in order to contain, control, prevent and otherwise restrict
the spread of SARS in the country until such time that he shall declare
that the SARS contagion is no longer a threat to the public health.
Specifically, the Secretary of Health shall exercise such powers
necessary and incidental to ensure the following:
Sec. 3. Assistance and Support. — The Secretary of
Health is hereby empowered to call upon all agencies of the Government
for assistance in the implementation of this Executive Order,
including, but not limited to, the following:
The Secretary of Health is likewise empowered to enlist the support of
the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police
(PNP) and the Philippine Coast Guard for the purpose of enforcing the
quarantine of a certain area or facilitating the transport and
conduction of SARS patients to SARS referral centers or otherwise for
the effective implementation of this Executive Order.
All agencies of the Government are hereby directed to provide the
Department of Health any and all information which may prevent or
minimize the entry and spread of SARS in the country.
Sec. 4. Funding. — An amount not exceeding One
Billion Pesos (P1,000,000,000.00) is hereby set aside from the funds of
the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office to cover the financial
requirements of this Executive Order.
Sec. 5. Classification of SARS as a Quarantinable
Disease. — Due to its highly contagious nature and considering the
danger it poses to public health, SARS is hereby classified as a
quarantinable disease.
Sec. 6. Examination and Surveillance of Vessels
and Aircraft and Quarantine. — Until otherwise declared by the
Secretary of Health, the examination of incoming and outgoing vessels
and aircraft, surveillance over sanitary conditions, including the
detention, isolation, and quarantine of passengers, crews, cargoes and
all personal effects found and passing through all ports and airports
of entry in the Philippines, and the issuance of quarantine
certificates, bills of health or other equivalent documents shall be
vested in the Bureau of Quarantine and International Health
Surveillance (BQIHS). The BQIHS shall continue to exercise its powers
and functions vested upon it under existing laws, rules and
regulations, subject to the control and supervision of the Secretary of
Health.
Sec. 7. Treatment and Containment of SARS. — The
Secretary of Health, or his duly designated representative, shall
promulgate such rules and regulations relative to containing, treating,
and otherwise managing the treatment and condition of SARS in
hospitals, health centers, quarantine areas, and such other areas where
persons with SARS are found or have been isolated with due regard to
the health and well-being of the victims and all those in contact with
them, including the communities within the vicinity.
Sec. 8. Authority of the Department of Education.
— The Secretary of Education shall have the authority to order the
closure of schools, institutions of learning, vocational, technical or
otherwise, including that of private institutions of learning, or the
suspension of classes, or otherwise utilize such buildings and edifices
for purposes of containing or managing the SARS epidemic, when so
determined and upon the advice of the Secretary of Health. When
circumstances so warrant, dissemination of information, health warnings
and advisories shall be part of his duties and functions throughout the
duration of the crisis.
Sec. 9. Authority of the Department of the
Interior and Local Government. — The Secretary of the Interior and
Local Government, upon the recommendation of the Secretary of Health,
shall mobilize the PNP and exercise supervision over local governments
for the duration of this crisis and only for the purposes contained in
this Executive Order. This authority shall include the isolation and
control of quarantine areas, the maintenance of peace and order related
to the management of the areas affected or otherwise lend support,
augmentation, and assistance to directives lawfully issued in relation
to the management and control of this crisis.
For this purpose, checkpoints and other means of curtailing the
movements of concerned persons, vehicles and animals may be enforced
provided the same is for a definite and limited duration of time and
due regard is given to the constitutional rights of all individuals.
When directed by the Secretary of Health, the transport and conduction
of SARS patients to hospitals or health centers for isolation and
treatment shall be allowed and upheld. No arrests and detentions shall
be enforced except upon lawful processes emanating from the courts or
upon order of quarantine of the Secretary of Health in accordance with
law for the purpose of preventing the introduction, transmission or
spread of SARS.
Sec. 10. Responsibilities of the Department of
Labor and Employment and its Bureaus and Attached Agencies. — The
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) shall be responsible for
providing information to those departing the Philippines and bound for
countries affected by the SARS or bound for countries in danger of
being affected by the epidemic. When so determined by the Secretary of
Health and when public safety may require, the departure of persons may
be prevented in those areas deemed affected. The DOLE shall likewise
monitor the entry of overseas Filipino workers who may be deemed as a
threat to public health.
Sec. 11. Responsibilities of the Department of
Foreign Affairs. — It shall be the responsibility of the Department of
Foreign Affairs to coordinate with the various embassies and
consulates, provide them with adequate information, provide travel
advisories, and such other measures and processes which would minimize,
if not prevent, the entry into the country of persons suspected of
having contracted SARS in the foreign ports of embarkation.
Sec. 12. Responsibilities of the Department of
Transportation and Communications. — The Department of Transportation
and Communications (DOTC) shall make available such infrastructure
facilities within all airports, seaports and other transportation
terminals as may be necessary for the implementation of this Executive
Order. When the public safety requires, as may be determined by the
Secretary of Health, the DOTC shall control the entry and exit of
aircraft, seacraft and other forms of transportation, to prevent the
introduction, transmission and spread of SARS in the country.
Sec. 13. Responsibility of the Department of Trade
and Industry. — The Department of Trade and Industry shall undertake
measures to prevent profiteering activities and other unscrupulous
practices which are inimical to the public.
Sec. 14. Responsibilities of the Bureau of
Immigration. — The Bureau of Immigration (BI) shall conduct strict
arrival and departure inspections including secondary inspections on
passengers going to and coming from SARS-affected countries. The BI
shall maintain complete arrival and departure records of passengers
arriving from and departing for SARS-affected countries and provide the
Secretary of Health such information as he may require.
Sec. 15. Responsibilities of the Office of the
National Security Adviser and the National Security Council
Secretariat. — The Office of the National Security Adviser and the
National Security Council Secretariat shall assist the Secretary of
Health through: (a) the coordination of the national intelligence
community in the task of gathering and evaluating information on the
SARS threat; and (b) the sharing of strategic assessments on the said
threat.
Sec. 16. Responsibility of the Office of the Press
Secretary and its Bureaus and Attached Agencies. — The Office of the
Press Secretary and its bureaus and attached agencies shall support the
SARS awareness campaign of the Department of Health.
Sec. 17. Responsibility of Philippine Health
Insurance Corporation. — The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation
shall develop an insurance package for public health workers to assist
them in defraying the cost of their hospitalization and other related
medical expenses in the event that they develop SARS while in the
performance of their duty.
Sec. 18. Sanctions and Penalties. — Any violation
or infraction of the lawful directives and orders emanating from the
duly designated authorities shall be punished in accordance with law
and all applicable rules and regulations related thereto.
Sec. 19. Effectivity. — This Executive Order shall
take effect immediately upon approval.
Done in the City of Manila,
this 26th day of April, in the year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Three.
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Since 19.07.98.