Infectious Diseases Act 1976 - Singapore Statutes Online

Protection of identity of person with HIV Infection or other sexually transmitted disease

25.—(1) Any person who, in the performance or exercise of his or her functions or duties under this Act, is aware or has reasonable grounds for believing that another person has HIV Infection or is suffering from a sexually transmitted disease or is a carrier of that disease must not disclose any information which may identify the other person except —

(a)	with the consent of the other person;
(b)	when it is necessary to do so in connection with the administration or execution of anything under this Act;
(c)	when it is necessary to do so in connection with the provision of information to a police officer under section 22 or 424 of the Criminal Procedure Code 2010;
(d)	when ordered to do so by a court;
(e)	to any medical practitioner or other health staff who is treating or caring for, or counselling, the other person;
(f)	to any blood, organ, semen or breast milk bank that has received or will receive any blood, organ, semen or breast milk from the other person;
(g)	for statistical reports and epidemiological purposes if the information is used in such a way that the identity of the other person is not made known;
(h)	to the victim of a sexual assault by the other person;
(i)	to the Controller of Immigration for the purposes of the Immigration Act 1959;
(j)	to the next-of-kin of the other person upon the other person’s death;
(k)	to any person or class of persons to whom, in the opinion of the Director-General of Health, it is in the public interest that the information be given; or [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023]
(l)	when authorised by the appropriate Minister to publish such information for the purposes of public health or public safety. [10/2008; 15/2010; 5/2019]

(2) Any person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months or to both.

[10/2008]

(3) For the purposes of subsection (1)(a), the consent of the other person includes —

(a)

if that person has died, the written consent of that person’s spouse, personal representative, administrator or executor;

(b)

if that person is below 16 years of age, the written consent of a parent or legal guardian of that person; and

(c)

if, in the opinion of the medical practitioner who undertook the test for HIV Infection for that person, that person has a disability by reason of which he or she appears incapable of giving consent, the written consent in the following order, of —

(i)	a legal guardian of that person;
(ii)	the spouse of that person;
(iii)	a parent of that person; or
(iv)	an adult child of that person.

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