Sunday, July 12, 2009

Infection Control Authority for Singapore?

Singapore has an Infectious Diseases Act. This was enacted by Parliament in 1976 and came into force on 1 Aug 1977. This essential piece of legislation is jointly administered by the Ministry of Health and the National Environment Agency (NEA) and deals with the prevention and control of infectious diseases in Singapore.

I remember hearing talk some time ago about the establishment of a regulatory agency that can more specifically deal with infections - a kind of Infection Control Authority. Currently it seems to straddle two Ministries, which may or may not be a good thing.

I think having a fully dedicated Authority to deal with infection control in Singapore is long overdue, and in fact seems to be looking more and more urgent. I hope the government will not delay too long in setting this up.

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