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(NAR) VOL. III NO. 3 / JULY - SEPTEMBER 1992

[ NQO ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER NO. 118-C S. 1992, March 06, 1992 ]

REVISED QUARANTINE RULES AND REGULATIONS



Part I

SECTION 1. Title - These rules and regulations shall be known as the “Revised Quarantine Rules and Regulations”.

SECTION 2. Authority - These rules and regulations are issued to implement Republic Act No. 123 (The Quarantine Law) Executive Order No. 119 (Reorganization of the Ministry of Health) and the International Health Regulations of the World Health Organization (WHO).

SECTION 3. Purpose - These rules and regulations are promulgated to protect and promote the health of people by ensuring maximum security against the introduction or spread of diseases subject to the International Health Regulations from foreign countries into the Philippines and from one port to another within the Philippines.

SECTION 4. Scope - These regulations shall apply to all vessels, aircraft, crew or passengers and cargoes that shall enter any seaport or airport within the territory of the Philippines, whether owned by government or private entities. These regulations shall include all activities mandated by the International Health Regulations of the WHO.

SECTION 5. Regulatory Authority - The Department of Health through the National Quarantine Office (Bureau of Quarantine) in the Office of Standards and Regulation shall exercise the regulatory functions under these Revised Quarantine Rules and Regulations.

SECTION 6. Definition of Terms - For the purpose of these Revised Quarantine Rules and Regulations, the following definitions are adopted:

1. Aedes egypti index - means the ratio, expressed as a percentage, between the number of houses in a limited well-defined area on the premises of which actual breeding places of Aedes egypti are found, and the total number of houses examined.

2. Aircraft means any machine used for aerial navigation.

3. Aircraft commander - the person serving in the aircraft having charge or command of its operation and navigation.

4. Airport/port of entry - any airport/seaport designated as such by the competent authorities of the Philippines on which aircraft/seacraft may make their first entry in the Philippines where the formalities incident to customs, immigration and quarantine are carried out.

5. Airport/seaport of departure the last place where an aircraft takes off/a vessel leaves port.

6. Baggage - means the personal effects of a traveller or of a member of the crew.

7. Crew - the personnel of a ship, an aircraft or other carriers, who are employed for duties on board.

8. Day - an interval of twenty-four hours.

9. Detention - the isolation of a person in a suitable place to be designated by the Director of Quarantine for the purpose of observation and treatment of such person.

10. Direct Transit Area - means a special area established in connection with an airport, approved by the National Quarantine Office and under its direct supervision, for accommodating transit passengers and crew in segregation, breaking their air voyage without leaving the airport.

11. Diseases Subject to the Regulations (quarantinable diseases) - refer to cholera, plague and yellow fever or any other disease that may be so classified by the World Health Organization.

12. Disinsection - means the operation in which measures are taken to kill the insect vectors of human disease present in ships, aircraft, and other means of transport.

13. Domestic Port - any airport or seaport situated within Philippine territorial limits generally utilized for local travel.

14. Foreign Port/Airport - any seaport/airport situated outside Philippine territorial limits.

15. Infected Area - is defined on epidemiological principles by the health administration reporting the disease in its country and need not correspond to administrative boundaries. It is that part of its territory which because of population characteristics, density and mobility and/or vector and animal reservoir potential, could support transmission of the reported disease.

16. Infected Person - a person who is incubating or suffering from a disease subject to the health regulation.

17. In Quarantine - means that state or condition during which measures are applied by a Quarantine Medical Officer to a ship, an aircraft or other means of transport, to prevent the spread of disease or vectors of disease from the object of quarantine.

18. Isolation - the separation of that person or group of persons from other persons except the health staff on duty, in such a manner as to prevent the spread of infection.

19. Medical Examination - a visit to and inspection of a ship, an aircraft or other means of transport, and the preliminary examination of persons on board, but does not include the periodical inspection of a ship to ascertain the need for deratting.

20. Pratique - permission for a ship to enter port, disembark and commence operation or an aircraft after landing, to disembark and commence operation.

21. Controlled Free Pratique - means permission for a ship to enter a port, disembark and commence operations but does not prevent the health authorities from periodically verifying by boarding and inspecting persons and records to be assured that the conditions have been met for granting such pratique.

22. Perimeter - when applied to an airport, means a line enclosing the area containing the airport buildings and any land or water used or intended to be used for the parking of aircraft.

23. Protective Area” - areas within a distance of at least 400 meters around the perimeter of an airport.

24. Quarantine Inspection - the inspection of a carrier together with its crew, passengers and cargo to determine the state of sanitation and health existing therein.

25. Ship Surgeon - a registered medical practitioner employed on a vessel.

26. Person on Surveillance - individuals under surveillance may move about freely, provided that they report at such intervals and at such places to authorities to be designated by the Director of Quarantine for the purpose of ascertaining their state of health during the period of surveillance.

27. Suspect - a person who is considered by the Quarantine Medical Officer as having been exposed to infection by a disease subject to the health regulations and is considered capable of spreading the disease.

28. Valid Certificate - means a certificate conforming with the rules and the model laid down by the World Health Organization in the International Health Regulations.

29. Yellow Fever-Receptive Area - means an area in which the virus of yellow fever does not exist but where the presence of Aedes egypti or any other vector of yellow fever would permit its development if introduced.

Part II
Vessel Sanitation Requirements

SECTION 7. Passenger Accommodations - Free ventilation and rigorous cleanliness should be maintained. Overcrowding must be avoided.

SECTION 8. Crew Quarters - Working clothes of the crew should be stored in proper lockers or hung on suitable hooks. The quarters should be inspected at least once a day by a responsible ship officer who shall see to it that sanitation is maintained at all times.

SECTION 9. Provision Storeroom and Refrigeration Room - The decks and bulkheads should be kept clean and painted as may be necessary. Provisions should be in acceptable sanitary containers and kept at prescribed temperature. Perishable provisions should be inspected daily for spoilage. Spoiled food must be disposed of in an appropriate manner.

SECTION 10. Galley (ship kitchen) and Pantry - These areas should be maintained in sanitary condition by frequent cleaning with hot water, lye and disinfectant or any cleaning material. Food should be kept in covered metal containers. Utensils and dishes should be cleaned thoroughly with hot water and soap then dried after use. The galley should be properly lighted, ventilated and fire proofed.

SECTION 11. Mess Rooms - These should be cleaned after each use and the wastes burned or placed in covered garbage cans for proper disposal. The decks should be maintained clean lest they become harboring places for cockroaches, flies and other insects.

SECTION 12. Toilets and Bathrooms - These should be conveniently located, ventilated and lighted but should not open directly into spaces where food is stored, prepared or served. The floors and walls should be cleaned daily. Drainage should be maintained in perfect condition to avoid flooding. Mops and buckets should be stored within convenient lockers. Water must be available at all times for flushing and cleaning.

SECTION 13. Forepeak, Shelter Decks and Holds - These should always be kept clean specially when empty. Canvas, ropes and dunnage should be arranged in a neat and orderly manner and should be moved as often as possible so as to destroy potential rat harborages.

SECTION 14. Medical and Surgical Provisions - Every vessel should carry an ample supply of medical and surgical provisions that may be used for injuries, minor ailments and medical emergencies.

SECTION 15. Sick-bay (ship’s hospital) - Every vessel should have a sick-bay or a room where treatment and confinement of the sick may be efficiently effected. It should always be maintained in clean condition and disinfected after being used. It should have its own toilet and bathroom facilities.

SECTION 16. Management of Communicable Disease on Board - If a case of communicable disease should occur on board any vessel, the following measures should be observed and enforced:

a. The patient should be isolated in the sick-bay or in a cabin that is set aside for his sole use and a member of the crew should be assigned to carry out appropriate nursing procedures;

b. Contact between the patient and/or his nurse with other persons on board should be reduced to a minimum;

c. Used clothing, linen and bedding of the patient and the assigned crew should be immersed at once in boiling water or in acceptable disinfecting solution;

d. The compartment from which the patient was removed should be disinfected and thoroughly cleaned;

e. Any person suffering from malaria, yellow fever or any mosquito-borne disease should be kept under mosquito nets and the room in which he is confined should be screened. Appropriate vector control measures should be undertaken;

f.  In case of plague, special measures must be taken to destroy rats, mice, fleas and other vermin on board. In case of pneumonic plague, the body discharges, specially sputum, must be disinfected and the attendant should wear an appropriate mask;

g. In case of cholera, typhoid fever and other gastro-intestinal disease, the drinking water on board should be sterilized by boiling or by acceptable sterilization method. The food should be thoroughly cooked. The discharges from a patient should be immediately disinfected and properly disposed of.

SECTION 17. Death at Sea and Landing of Remains - Whenever possible, a dead body should be retained for post-mortem examination or for burial ashore. The dead should be put in a body bag and packed in ice or placed in a hermitically sealed container. If there is no suspicion of foul play and if for any reason it is not possible to retain the body, the dead may be buried at sea in accordance with maritime regulations and procedures.

The landing at the port or airport of the Philippines of human remains or cadavers shall follow these regulations:

a. Notify the Director of Quarantine through the Quarantine Medical Officer of the port or if there is no Quarantine Medical Officer, through the local health authorities of that port, about the human remains on board.

b. All cadavers/remains for landing at Philippine ports coming from another port should be accompanied by a death certificate or a true copy thereof duly certified by the appropriate authorities from the port of origin.

c. Cadavers/remains shall be accompanied by a certificate of the embalmer stating that the body/remains had been properly embalmed and placed in a sealed casket which is air-tight and waterproof. Bones and ashes shall be placed in a hermitically sealed and unbreakable turn or other similar containers.

d. Certification from the Consul at the country of origin.

e. In addition to the above, the body of a person who died of any disease subject to the Regulations in a foreign port may be allowed to pass through quarantine under the following conditions: The casket shall remain sealed from origin to burial which must take place within 24 hours after arrival and clearance. On the other hand, if a person dies of any of the above named diseases during the voyage, the body should be buried at sea in accordance with maritime regulations and procedures.

Part III
Vessel Inspection Upon Entry


SECTION 18. Vessels to be Inspected - The following vessels are subject to quarantine inspection upon entry in any port of the Philippines:

a. All vessels coming from a foreign port - A vessel cleared in one port in the Philippines is deemed cleared for all other ports in the country except in case of any vessels with a communicable disease on board or death on board.

b. Interisland vessels plying domestic ports where death occurred on board or a disease subject to the Regulations occurs during the voyage.

SECTION 19. Time of Quarantine Inspection - Inspection of vessels required by these regulations shall be made between 0800 — 1200H and 1300 — 1700H, Mondays to Fridays. Any inspection performed outside of these hours and during Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays shall be considered overtime work; hence, reasonable compensation may be allowed by the Director of Quarantine.

SECTION 20. Personnel Assigned for Inspection - The quarantine inspection of vessels shall be made by the Quarantine Medical Officer and his duly accredited assistant/s. In ports where there is no quarantine medical officer, any physician designated by the Undersecretary of Health for Standards and Regulation upon the recommendation of the Director of Quarantine, shall perform such inspection.

SECTION 21. Requirements for Vessels to be Inspected - Any vessel subject to quarantine inspection shall be considered in quarantine until given a pratique. Such vessel shall fly a yellow flag at its foremast, drop its anchor at the quarantine anchorage, put down its accommodation ladder, wait for the Quarantine Medical Officer and give the conveyance a proper shelter or lee in stormy weather while he is boarding and leaving the vessel. The Quarantine Medical Officer has authority to delay quarantine inspection of a vessel until the above conditions are complied with.

SECTION 22. Boarding of Vessels Subject to Quarantine Inspection - No person, except the Quarantine Medical Officer and duly authorized quarantine employees, shall be permitted to board a vessel subject to quarantine inspection until after the vessel has been inspected by the Quarantine Medical Officer and granted pratique except upon prior permission from the Director of Quarantine or his authorized representative.

SECTION 23. Requirements From the Master of Vessels to be Inspected - The master of a vessel to be inspected for quarantine shall show to the Quarantine Medical Officer the following documents duly accomplished:

a. Maritime Declaration of Health

b. Passenger and crew list

c. Cargo manifest

d. Deratting/deratting exemption certificate

e. Clinical record of all cases treated during the voyage

f.  Other documents deemed necessary by the Quarantine Medical Officer.

The master may order the mustering of the crew and passengers on board or in a well-lighted and ventilated place for inspection upon the request of the Quarantine Medical Officer. He shall facilitate the inspection of the vessel in order to ascertain the sanitary condition aboard. The ship surgeon, if there is any, shall be required by the Master to supply the Quarantine Medical Officer the medical data of passengers and crew. He shall accompany the Quarantine Medical Officer to the sick-bay, to examine any patient and his clinical records.

SECTION 24. Immunization Certificate Requirement - Any passenger or crew of a vessel arriving within the incubation period of the disease concerned is required to present on arrival to the Quarantine Medical Officer at such port the following immunization certificates:

a. Yellow Fever - Arrivals from the yellow fever infected areas are required to present valid international certificates of vaccination against yellow fever if arriving within six days from a yellow fever infected area. The validity of this certificate shall extend for a period of ten years, beginning six days after the date of immunization or in the event of a reimmunization, within such period of ten years from the date of that reimmunization. The vaccination center which will administer such vaccination should be approved by the World Health Organization.

b. The Director of Quarantine may from time to time prescribe other certificates of immunization if in his discretion such requirements are essential to public health on account of varying health conditions in foreign ports.

SECTION 25. Extent and Method of Quarantine Inspection - In inspection of vessels, the Quarantine Medical Officers shall give due consideration to the following conditions before granting a pratique to the vessel:

a. Sanitary conditions on board at the time of arrival;

b. Health status of the port of departure and ports of call with respect to the presence of disease subject to the Regulations therein, and the conduct of the vessel while in port;

c. State of health of the passengers and crew;

d. Validity of the deratting/deratting exemption certificate;

e. Type and tonnage of cargo carried by the vessel;

f.  State of rat life on board.

SECTION 26. Release of Vessel from Quarantine - (a) Any vessel, together with its passengers, crew and cargoes inspected by the Quarantine Medical Officer shall be released from quarantine and shall be issued a pratique upon compliance with these rules and regulations. Any vessel granted a provisional pratique is required to observe all requirements stipulated in the pratique. Upon compliance with the requirements thereat, a free pratique will be issued in lieu of the provisional pratique. A copy of the pratique issued to a vessel must be presented to the Commissioner of Customs or his representative.

b. Upon the discretion of the Director of Quarantine, radio pratique may be granted to military vessels of the Republic of the Philippines and foreign countries and ocean-going passenger liners under the following conditions:
  1. There should be a ship surgeon on board or in the vessels operating as a squadron;

  2. The request for radio pratique should be received within 24 hours before the expected time of arrival in the Philippines;

  3. The ports visited during the voyage should be stated and if such ports are infected with any disease subject to the International Health Regulations, the request should include a positive statement that the necessary preventive safeguards have been instituted for the vessel, crew, passengers and cargoes. Such statement may be expressed in the radiogram by the words, "Maximum Quarantine Precautions Enforced":

  4. There should be no actual case or suspected case on board of a disease subject to the International Health Regulations or of dangerous communicable disease;

  5. In order for the radio pratique to be in effect, the vessel must receive an affirmative reply from the Director of Quarantine. In the absence of a reply or upon receipt of a refusal, the vessel must anchor at the quarantine anchorage and await quarantine inspection;

  6. When the radio pratique is granted, the vessel may enter the port without anchoring for quarantine inspection and the Director of Quarantine or his representative shall notify accordingly the shipping agent/company who shall in turn notify the other agencies concerned;

  7. When the vessel has docked, the Quarantine Medical Officer shall proceed with quarantine formalities.
c. Controlled Free Pratique - Upon the discretion of the Director of Quarantine, controlled free pratique may be granted to cargo vessels direct from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or Europe provided it meets the following conditions:
  1. There has been no death on board during the voyage;

  2. There is no sick person on board nor was there any case of disease of an infectious nature during the voyage;

  3. That there has been no deaths nor illnesses among captive animals and birds, including rodents, on board during the voyage; and

  4. That the deratting certificate is still valid.
SECTION 27. Quarantine Restriction On Cargo - Any cargo from any plague-infected port that is liable to harbor rats or fleas shall be fumigated prior to its unloading in the port. Such cargo, if accompanied by an acceptable fumigation certificate from the port or loading, may be permitted entry.

SECTION 28. Importation of Materials for Transplantation or Research - Organs or tissues of human origin, culture of bacteria or any live microbe or collection of organisms, that may cause any disease to humans, or any insect, animal or plant infected with such microorganisms, potentially capable of transmitting such disease to humans, shall not be admitted to the Philippines without a specific permit issued by the Director of Quarantine.

SECTION 29. Management of Persons with Communicable Disease not Subject to the International Health Regulations - When an arriving vessel after quarantine inspection has on board any person suffering from a dangerous communicable disease which is not subject to the Regulations, the Quarantine Medical Officer shall promptly notify the local health authorities regarding the existence of such a disease on board for proper disposition of the case.

Part IV
Requirements of Vessels While In Port

SECTION 30. Rat Guards on Mooring Connection Lines - If the vessel docks alongside the piers, all mooring lines should be guarded by an approved type of rat guard not less than one meter in diameter and so fixed as to be always at right angle to the line to which it is attached.

SECTION 31. Cargo Nets and Gangways - All cargo nets should be hauled up when not in use. The gangway should be well lighted throughout the night.

SECTION 32. Distance of Vessel from the Dock - All vessels should fend off at least 1 1/2 meters from the dock.

SECTION 33. Mooring of Vessel to Another Vessel which is Moored to a Dock - A vessel which shall tie alongside another vessel moored to a dock shall institute all necessary measures to prevent the transgress of rats from one vessel to another.

SECTION 34. Disposal of Garbage - No vessel shall be allowed to dump garbage overboard while in the harbor. Garbage should be collected in prescribed containers for disposal. When a vessel is in port, arrangements should be made for the regular removal of garbage by a garbage disposal service.

SECTION 35. Control of Flies, Mosquitoes and Other Insects - All breeding places of flies, mosquitoes and other insects shall be eradicated. The National Quarantine Office shall from time to time order appropriate measures against flies, mosquitoes and other insects.

SECTION 36. Rat Inspection of Vessels - (a) The following vessels shall be subject to rat inspection while in the harbor:

1. Vessels without deratting/ deratting exemption certificate.

2. Vessels with expired deratting/ deratting exemption certificate.

3. Vessels with valid deratting/ deratting exemption certificate but with moderate to heavy rat infestation aboard, or plague-infected ports were visited during the voyage.
  1. Rat inspection of a vessels shall be done preferably when the vessel is empty.

  2. Any rat inspection shall be under the direct supervision of a Quarantine Medical Officer. All findings of such inspection shall be duly recorded in a deratting exemption form together with all recommendations of the inspection team. Any vessel issued a deratting exemption certificate is bound to observe all requirements stipulated therein.

  3. A deratting/deratting exemption certificate shall be valid for six months. An extension of the expired certificate by one month to a vessel may be issued on condition that formal inspection and issuance of a deratting/deratting exemption certificate shall be done in the next port authorized to conduct such inspection and issuance of deratting/deratting exemption certificate.

  4. No vessel shall be allowed to leave the port unless its deratization document is in order.
SECTION 37. Fumigation - The following are subject to fumigation while in the harbor:

a. Any vessel with human or rodent plague on board;

b. Any vessel moderately or heavily infested with rats;

c. Cargoes in a vessel from a plague-infected port which are liable to harbor rats and fleas. When the cargo is covered by a valid certificate of fumigation from the port of loading, the fumigation may be waived.

d. Interisland vessels for their periodic annual fumigation.

SECTION 38. Methods of Fumigation - Vessels for fumigation shall be fumigated simultaneously in all parts with prescribed fumigants. Such fumigation shall be performed under the supervision of a Quarantine Medical Officer. The master of every vessel for fumigation shall carry out all pre-fumigation orders for the preparation of the vessel and the precautions to be taken to insure the safety of the officers and crew. Any vessel under fumigation shall fly a yellow flag and post danger signs on board in conspicuous places. No person shall board such vessel unless granted permission by the Quarantine Medical Officer in charge.

SECTION 39. Fumigation of Loaded Barges - If only a portion of the cargo of a vessel is subject to fumigation prior to its unloading, the Director of Quarantine or his representative may, in his judgment, order the fumigation of such cargo in barges. The fumigation of such barges shall be in conformity with the regulations provided in Section 38.

SECTION 40. Application of Other Deratting Measures On Board - The Director of Quarantine or his representative shall order other forms of deratting measures, such as; poisoning or trapping, if in his judgment such measures are sufficient to eradicate slight degree of rat infestation on board vessels. Such deratting measures shall be performed under the direct supervision of a Quarantine Medical Officer. The master of any vessel subject to such measures shall cooperate with the Quarantine Medical Officer in charge to insure an effective deratting and avoid any possible poisoning or injury to personnel of the vessel.

SECTION 41. Measures for Eradication of Insects and Vermin - The Director of Quarantine or his authorized representative shall order the disinsection of vessels or cargo of vessels infested with insects or other vermin.

SECTION 42. Departure of a Vessel - No vessel plying on international trade shall be allowed to leave any port of the Philippines without securing from the National Quarantine Office a Quarantine Clearance For Outgoing Vessels. This document shall be granted to a vessel that has complied with all quarantine requirements. This document shall be a requirement for the granting of a clearance from the Bureau of Customs. The Director of Quarantine may order the medical examination of any person before his departure on an international voyage in order to prevent the introduction on board a vessel possible agents of infection of a disease subject to the Regulations.

Part V
Detention of Vessels in Quarantine

The diseases subject to the Regulations are: cholera, plague and yellow fever. The incubation period of cholera is 5 days, yellow fever and plague is 6 days for both diseases.

SECTION 43. Vessels to be Placed in Detention - Any vessel which the Quarantine Medical Officer considers infected with a disease subject to the International Health Regulations shall be detained in quarantine.

SECTION 44. Requirements of Vessel in Detention - No direct contact shall be allowed between any person in the vessel in quarantine and any person outside the vessel. Such vessel shall fly a yellow flag while under detention in quarantine.

SECTION 45. Detention of Persons - The pilot, customs and other officials on board a vessel in quarantine shall be subjected to all restrictions imposed by the Director of Quarantine on all persons on board such vessels.

SECTION 46. Bunkering, Unloading of Mail and Acquisition of Provisions - With the permission of the Director of Quarantine or his authorized representative, a vessel may proceed along-side a vessel under detention, may unload mail to said vessels and may supply provisions of food and water, provided that such activities are all performed ship-side and in no instance can the personnel of one vessel transfer to the other vessel. Any violation of this provision shall cause the detention of the vessel together with all its crew and passengers.

SECTION 47. Movement of Vessels in Quarantine - No vessel in quarantine is allowed to move from its anchorage without the permission of the Director of Quarantine. If the pilot moves the vessel without permission from the Director of Quarantine or his representative, the pilot shall be subject to the same restrictions as those imposed on the crew or passengers of the vessel in detention.

SECTION 48. Surveillance of Detained Persons - Persons detained aboard a vessel in detention shall from time to time be inspected by the Quarantine Medical Officer. Additional quarantine personnel may be detailed on board to maintain surveillance.

SECTION 49. Stool Examination for Cholera - Vessel in detention with passengers and crew coming from a cholera—infected port may be subject to bacteriological examination of their stools for cholera according to the discretion of the Director of Quarantine.

Part VI
General Sanitation Requirements for
Airport of Entry

SECTION 50. Requirements for an Airport of Entry - An airport of entry shall at all times have at its disposal the following:

a. an organized quarantine medical service with adequate staff;

b. a place for medical inspection;

c. a bacteriological laboratory, or facilities for dispatching suspected material to such a laboratory;

d. facilities for the transport, isolation and care of infected persons or suspects, and for carrying out any other prophylactic measures in suitable premises, either within the airport or in proximity to it;

e. facilities and personnel necessary for efficient disinfection, disinsection, deratting for the control of rodents and other vectors and any other appropriate measure provided for in this Revised Quarantine Rules and Regulations;

f.  an adequate provision of potable drinking water and a proper and safe disposal of excrement, refuse, waste water, condemned food and other matter dangerous to health; and

g. facilities for vaccination against yellow fever and other immunization requirements of other countries.

SECTION 51. Duties of the Quarantine Medical Officer - The Quarantine Medical Officer of a sanitary airport shall as much as possible extend coordination to the airport health authorities on matters of general sanitation of the airport.

SECTION 52. Waste Matter from Aircraft - Aircraft in flight or grounded in the airport are forbidden to throw or let fall any matter capable of producing an outbreak of infectious disease. In case of spillage, it is the duty of the airline servicing unit to disinfect such under the supervision of the National Quarantine Office.

SECTION 53. Deratting and Disinsection Measures - The Director of Quarantine shall from time to time order the deratting and disinsection of any airport or aircraft if in his opinion such measures are necessary for the interest of public health.

SECTION 54. Passengers with Infectious Disease Not Subject to the Regulations - (a) The embarkation of persons with infectious disease not subject to the Regulations may be prohibited except in case of the transport of sick persons by aircraft specially allocated for the purpose.

b. If the aircraft commander wishes to disembark a sick person, he shall notify the airline company soonest in order to insure an early notification of the National Quarantine Office. The sick person may be landed under the direct supervision of the Quarantine Medical Officer on duty and the other passengers may be subject to medical inspection.

SECTION 55. Transport of Cadavers - The transport of cadavers by aircraft shall be governed by the provisions stipulated in Section 17 of these Revised Quarantine Rules and Regulations.

SECTION 56. Protective Area - Active anti-mosquito measures shall be maintained within a protective area extending for a distance of at least 400 meters around the perimeter of every airport of entry. A regular surveillance and monitoring of the presence of adult and larval Aedes egypti is undertaken to maintain the A. egypti index within the recommended limits as required by the World Health Organization.

SECTION 57. Direct Transit Area - any building used as accommodation for persons or animals within a direct transit area provided at any airport shall be kept mosquito proof.

Part VII
Inspection of Aircraft Upon Landing


SECTION 58. Aircraft to be Inspected - The following aircraft are subject to quarantine inspection upon landing in the Philippines:

a. all aircraft from foreign airports;

b. all aircraft from domestic airports where diseases subject to the International Health Regulations prevail; and

c. all aircraft from domestic airports suspected of having on board a person who is sick of or who died of a communicable disease.

SECTION 59. Requirement of Aircraft for Landing - Any aircraft from a foreign airport bound for the Philippines shall land first at an airport of entry, unless permission to land elsewhere is first granted by the appropriate authorities, who upon granting such permission shall immediately notify the Director of Quarantine. It shall be the responsibility of any airline company operating an aircraft engaged in international flight to notify the National Quarantine Office about the estimated time of arrival of their aircraft. Such notice shall specify the type of aircraft, the registration marks and flight number, the last airport of departure, the airport of entry and the number of persons on board. Notification as to the arrival of such aircraft shall be given as to allow the Quarantine Medical Officer to be at the airport of entry on or before the time of scheduled arrival. Any quarantine inspection outside regular office hours shall be considered overtime work; hence, reasonable compensation may be allowed by the Director of Quarantine as stipulated in Section 19.

SECTION 60. Personnel Assigned for Inspection - The quarantine inspection of aircraft shall be done by the Quarantine Medical Officer and his duly authorized assistant/s.

SECTION 61. Requirement for Aircraft to be Inspected - Any aircraft subject to quarantine shall be considered in quarantine until given a pratique. Such aircraft shall maneuver at its place of parking, put in place its accommodation ladder and wait for the Quarantine Medical Officer to perform the inspection.

SECTION 62. Boarding of Aircraft Subject to Quarantine Inspection - No person except the Quarantine Medical Officer and his assistant/s shall be permitted to board any aircraft subject to quarantine inspection until after the aircraft has been granted a pratique. The inspection of passengers and crew of aircraft, as much as possible, should be performed in the quarantine inspection area in the airport terminal. Any person who enters the confines of the quarantine inspection area during the quarantine inspection of passengers without the permission of the Quarantine Medical Officer shall be subject to the same quarantine requirements imposed on the passengers and crew of such aircraft. This provision shall not apply to aircraft in distress wherein the boarding of such aircraft by rescue parties is imperative to save the lives on board.

SECTION 63. Requirement for Commanders of Aircraft to be Inspected - The commander of an aircraft to be inspected for quarantine shall give to the Quarantine Medical Officer the duly accomplished aircraft General Declaration of Health and sign for the authenticity of such information. He shall provide the Quarantine Medical Officer a copy of the passenger list and cargo manifest. He shall facilitate the medical inspection of passengers and crew by the Quarantine Medical Officer whenever necessary.

SECTION 64. Immunization Certificates Required - The immunization certificates required from passengers and crew of aircraft arriving in the Philippines from any foreign airport are similar to those prescribed in Section 24.

SECTION 65. Quarantine Restriction on Cargoes - Cargoes carried by an aircraft from any foreign airport shall be governed by the same requirements as stipulated in Section 28.

SECTION 66. Disinsection of Aircraft - In view of the danger of introduction of insects which are vectors of diseases, aircraft arriving from foreign airport shall accomplish the following methods of disinsection:

a. all aircraft mentioned above shall be disinsected after embarkation of passengers before closing the aircraft doors and actual take-off from the last airport of departure and one-half hour before landing in a Philippine airport;

b. the cabins, cockpit, baggage compartments and other places in the aircraft shall be sprayed; and

c. an approved type of aerosol insecticide or in lieu of this, a fine vaporization from a hand sprayer of recommended insecticide shall be used.

SECTION 67. Departure of Aircraft to Foreign Airports - No aircraft shall be allowed to leave any airport of the Philippines to foreign airports without procuring from the Director of Quarantine or his duly authorized representative, an outgoing quarantine clearance. This clearance shall be granted to the aircraft on condition that such an aircraft has observed all quarantine requirements imposed. The outgoing quarantine clearance shall be a requirement for the granting of a customs clearance of departure. The Director of Quarantine may, when he considers it necessary, order the medical examination of any person before the departure on an international flight in order to prevent the departure of any infected person or suspect.

Part VIII
Measures to be Followed in Domestic
Ports Infected with Diseases Subject to
the International Health Regulations

SECTION 68. General Requirements - The Director of Quarantine may, in his discretion, order the medical examination for surveillance or isolation of passengers and crew of aircraft, vessels and other conveyance departing from a local infected area.

SECTION 69. Cholera - (a) At local areas where cholera prevails, special care should be taken to prevent the water and the food supply from being contaminated. The drinking water, unless of known purity, should be boiled or chlorinated and the food thoroughly cooked and protected from contamination. Food products that are ordinarily consumed in an uncooked state coming from an infected area or shipped through such areas should not be allowed shipment unless certified by health authorities from the port of origin that these food products are fit for human consumption.

b. The baggage of passengers embarking from infected areas shall be subject to inspection.

SECTION 70. Plague - (a) In infected areas where rodent or human plague exist, every precautions shall be taken to prevent rats and fleas from getting aboard any conveyance.

b. Conveyances infested with rats and fleas shall be subject to the fumigation requirements stipulated in Section 39.

c. Articles and cargoes which are liable to harbor rats and fleas should not be allowed to be shipped out until freed from such vermin through fumigation.

SECTION 71. Yellow Fever - (a) No person shall be allowed to depart from a yellow fever infected area unless he has in possession a valid certificate of immunization against yellow fever.

b. Any conveyance departing from any yellow fever infected area shall be thoroughly disinsected prior to its departure.

Part IX
Special Measures on Conveyances
Infected with Diseases Subject to the
International Health Organization

SECTION 72. Cholera Infected Ship or Aircraft - (a) A ship or aircraft shall be regarded as infected if during the voyage a case of cholera has occurred on board.

b. Even when coming from a cholera-infected area, a ship or an aircraft on arrival shall be regarded as healthy if on medical examination, the Quarantine Medical Officer is satisfied that no case of cholera has occurred on board during the voyage.

SECTION 73. Management of Cholera-Infected Vessel or Aircraft - (a) Medical examination of crew and passengers;

b. Patients shall be disembarked, isolated and treated;

c. Cases manifesting the clinical symptoms of the disease in which no cholera vibrio has been found or in which vibrios found are not characteristic of cholera vibrio, shall be considered as actual patients and treated as such;

d. Cholera carriers discovered on arrival shall be disembarked, isolated and treated. They shall be released only when three successive bacteriological examinations of their stools have been found to be negative;

e. Baggages of any infected person or suspect and any other article which is considered contaminated shall be disinfected;

f.  Water carried on board which is considered contaminated shall be disinfected, removed and the containers shall likewise be disinfected;

g. Human excreta, waste water including bilge water, and any matter which is considered to be contaminated shall be properly disinfected under supervision of the National Quarantine Office prior to disposal;

h. Unloading of contaminated matters and wastes shall be under the direct supervision of the National Quarantine Office which shall take all measures necessary to prevent infection of persons engaged in such an operation. Such persons shall be subject to surveillance for a period not exceeding five days from the time they cease unloading.

Plague

SECTION 74. Plague-Infected or Suspected Ship or Aircraft - (a) A ship or an aircraft on arrival shall be regarded as plague-infected if it has a case of human or rodent plague on board.

b. A ship on arrival shall be regarded as suspected if it has no case of human plague on board but there is an abnormal mortality among rodents on board, the cause of which is yet unknown;

c. Even when coming from a plague-infected area, a ship or an aircraft on arrival shall be regarded as healthy if on medical examination, the conditions specified in the preceding paragraphs (a) and (b) do not exist.

SECTION 75. Management of Plague-Infected or Suspected Ship or Aircraft - On arrival of a plague-infected or suspected ship or aircraft, the following measures shall be applied:

a. Medical examination of crew and passengers;

b. Patients with plague shall be disembarked, isolated and treated;

c. Any suspect will be disinsected and placed under surveillance for a period of not more than six days from the date of arrival;

d. Baggages of a plague-infected person or suspect and any other article or part of the ship or aircraft considered to be contaminated shall be disinfected;

e. Any ship or aircraft with human or rodent plague on board shall be subject to fumigation.

SECTION 76. Management of Arrivals from Plague-Infected Areas - A healthy ship or aircraft arriving from a plague-infected area shall be subjected to the following measures:

a. Any suspect who disembarks shall be placed under surveillance for a period not more than six days reckoned from the date of his departure from the plague-infected area;

b. The Director of Quarantine may, in his judgment, order the fumigation of a vessel arriving from a plague-infected area if findings reveal the vessel to be moderately or heavily infested with rats.

Yellow Fever

SECTION 77. General Requirements - (a) Any person over one year of age arriving from a yellow fever infected area must possess a valid yellow fever immunization certificate;

b. Any person arriving from a yellow fever infected area without a valid certificate of vaccination against the disease, shall be isolated until his certificate becomes valid or until a period of not more than six days reckoned from the last possible exposure has elapsed. Children under one year of age coming from an infected area will be subject to isolation or surveillance if indicated.

SECTION 78. Yellow Fever Infected or Suspected Ship or Aircraft - (a) On arrival, a ship or aircraft shall be regarded as yellow fever infected if it has a case of yellow fever on board.

b. On arrival, a ship or aircraft shall be regarded as suspected if disinsection was not performed satisfactorily and live mosquitoes are found on board.

SECTION 79. Management of Yellow Fever Infected or Suspected Ship or Aircraft - (a) Careful medical examination of all passengers and crew;

b. Temperature of all passengers and crew may be taken when necessary;

c. Any person under observation presenting a fever above 38ºC., shall be isolated in a screened room;

d. The sick shall be immediately disembarked, isolated and protected by netting against the access of mosquitoes;

e. Other persons on board an infected or suspected ship or aircraft shall be subject to the provisions of Section 77, paragraph (b);

f.  The ship or aircraft shall be inspected and disinsection of mosquitoes on board shall be instituted, and until such measures have been carried out, a vessel shall be considered in quarantine.

g. The vessel or aircraft shall be disinsected against mosquitoes before the discharge of cargo. The discharge of cargo shall be under the supervision of the Quarantine Medical Officer and may be permitted by the employment of immune persons for discharging the cargo. If non-immune persons are employed, they shall be kept under surveillance for six days reckoned from the last day of exposure on board.

Part X
Penal Provisions

SECTION 81. Penalties - Violation of any provision of these Revised Quarantine Rules and Regulations is punishable by a fine or imprisonment as provided in Section 11 of Republic Act No. 123 which is quoted as follows:

SECTION 11. Penalties - (a) Any person who violates any regulation prescribed under Sections 5, 6, 8, 9 and 10 of Republic Act No. 123 or who enters or departs from the limits of any quarantine detention station, ground, anchorage, in violation of quarantine rules and regulations without permission from the quarantine officer in charge, shall be punished by a fine of not more than two thousand pesos or by imprisonment of not more than one year or both at the discretion of the court of competent jurisdiction.

b. Any vessel or aircraft which violates any provision of this Act, shall forfeit to the Government of the Philippines, not more than ten thousand pesos, the amount to be determined by the Collector of Customs, which shall be made a lien on such vessel."

Adopted: 6 Mar. 1992

(SGD). ANTONIO O. PERIQUET, M.D.
Secretary of Health



APPENDIX 1

Model of an International Certificate
of Vaccination
Revaccination Against Yellow Fever

The certificate must be printed in English and French; an additional language may be added. It must be completed in English or French; an additional language may be used.

The international certificate of vaccination is an individual certificate. It should not be used collectively. Separate certificates should be issued for children; the information should not be incorporated in the mother’s certificate.

An international certificate is valid only if the yellow fever vaccine used has been approved by WHO and if the vaccinating center has been designated by the national health administration for the area in which the center is situated and so recorded with WHO. The date should be recorded in the following sequence: day, month, year, the month written in letters, e.g. 8 January 1991.

A certificate issued to a child who is unable to write should be signed by a parent or guardian. For illiterates, the signature should be indicated by their mark certified by another person.

Although a nurse may carry out the vaccination under the strict supervision of a qualified medical practitioner, the certificate must be signed by the person authorized by the national health administration. The official stamp of the center is not an accepted substitute for a personal signature.


INTERNATIONAL CERTIFICATE OF VACCINATION OR
REVACCINATION AGAINST YELLOW FEVER


CERTIFICAT INTERNATIONAL DE VACCINATION OU DE REVACCINATION CONTRE LA FIEVRE JAUNE

This is to certify that _________________ date of birth _____ sex __ whose signature follows __________________________________

has on the date indicated been vaccinated or revaccinated against yellow fever.

Date
Signature and professional
status of vaccinator
Manufacturer
and batch
no. of vaccine
Official Stamp
of vaccinating
center


This certificate is valid only if the vaccine used has been approved by the World Health Organization and if the vaccinating center has been designated by the health administration for the territory in which that center is situated.

The validity of this certificate shall extend for a period of ten years, beginning ten days after the date of vaccination or, in the event of a revaccination within such period of ten years, from the date of that revaccination.

This certificate must be signed in his own hand by a medical practitioner or other person authorized by the national health administration; his official stamp is not accepted substitute for his signature.

Any amendment of this certificate, or erasure, or failure to complete any part of it, may render it invalid.
Signature of person vaccinated
e.g.: 8 January 1992
Signature required
(rubber stamp not accepted)
Official stamp
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