First Previous (PART III. Health Services.) Next (PART V. Miscellaneous.)

26 1953

HEALTH ACT, 1953

PART IV.

Miscellaneous Amendments of Principal Act.

Amendment of section 31 of Principal Act.

34. —Section 31 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the addition thereto of the following subsection:

“(10) Regulations under this section may, in particular, require the vaccination against smallpox of persons engaged in work at or about airports or seaports, and—

(a) the obligation to contain the provision referred to in paragraph (b) of subsection (7) of this section shall not apply as respects such regulations, and

(b) section 32 of this Act shall not apply in relation to such vaccination.”

Amendment of section 38 of Principal Act.

35. —An order made after the commencement of this section under subsection (1) of section 38 of the Principal Act shall have no effect unless, in addition to being signed by the chief medical officer, it is also signed by another registered medical practitioner.

Amendment of section 44 of Principal Act.

36. —(1) Section 44 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of “or a disease suspected to be an infectious disease by the chief medical officer of the health authority in whose functional area such person ordinarily resides” after “infectious disease”.

(2) Section 44 of the Principal Act shall be construed as authorising the making of a payment for domestic help where a married woman is undergoing treatment for an infectious disease to the satisfaction of the chief medical officer of the health authority in whose functional area she ordinarily resides and her husband is unable to make reasonable and proper provision for the care of the family.

(3) Sections 28 and 33 of this Act shall apply in relation to the service made available under section 44 of the Principal Act in like manner as they apply in relation to the services made available under Part III of this Act.

Amendment of section 48 of Principal Act.

37. —Subsection (1) of section 48 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution of the words “medical officer of health” for the words “district medical officer” in both places where the latter words occur, and

(b) by the substitution of the words “the area or district for which he acts” for the words “his district”.

Regulations under Part V of Principal Act.

38. —(1) Regulations under Part V of the Principal Act may provide for all or any of the following matters:

(a) the licensing or registration of—

(i) persons engaged in the manufacture, preparation, importation, storage, distribution or sale of food for human consumption,

(ii) premises, vehicles or stalls in or at which food is manufactured, prepared, stored, distributed or exposed for sale for human consumption,

(b) the description of premises, vehicles or stalls so licensed or registered,

(c) the prohibition of the manufacture, preparation, importation, storage, distribution, exposure for sale or sale of food otherwise than by licensed or registered persons or in or at licensed or registered premises, vehicles or stalls (as the case may be),

(d) the cancellation or suspension of licences or registrations,

(e) matters ancillary to the foregoing matters.

(2) Where regulations under Part V of the Principal Act include, by virtue of subsection (1) of this section, provision for the keeping of registers by health authorities—

(a) any register kept pursuant to the regulations by a health authority shall be deemed to be in proper custody when in the custody of an officer of the health authority authorised in that behalf by the health authority and shall be admissible in evidence without further proof, on production from the proper custody,

(b) prima facie evidence of any entry in any register kept pursuant to the regulations by a health authority may be given in any Court or any legal proceedings by the production of a copy of such entry purporting to be certified to be a true copy by an officer of the health authority authorised in that behalf, and it shall not be necessary to prove the signature of such officer, or that he was in fact such officer or was so authorised,

(c) a certificate purporting to be under the hand of an officer of a health authority authorised in that behalf that a specified person, premises, vehicle or stall was not, during a specified period, registered in a specified register kept pursuant to the regulations by the health authority shall be accepted in any Court or any legal proceedings as prima facie evidence of the facts so certified, and it shall not be necessary to prove the signature of such officer, or that he was in fact such officer or was so authorised.

(3) Regulations under Part V of the Principal Act may provide for functions to be performed for the purposes of the regulations by Justices of the District Court or Peace Commissioners, being functions relating to any of the following matters:

(a) the making of orders in relation to the destruction or other disposal of food which is diseased, contaminated or otherwise unfit for human consumption,

(b) the reviewing of orders prohibiting the importation or the removal from the place of importation of articles of food or animals or materials intended for use in the manufacture of food,

(c) the annulment or confirmation of orders relating to the cancellation or suspension of licences or registrations or the prohibition of the user of premises, stalls or vehicles for any specified purpose,

(d) the direction of health authorities to license or register persons, premises, vehicles or stalls in specified circumstances.

(4) Where any repairs, structural alterations or additions to premises are required by any authority enforcing regulations under Part V of the Principal Act to comply with those regulations—

(a) the repairs, structural alterations or additions may be carried out notwithstanding any covenant, agreement or condition in any lease or other contract of tenancy under which the premises are held,

(b) before the repairs, structural alterations or additions are carried out, the person required to carry them out shall—

(i) if he is not the rated occupier of the premises, inform the rated occupier, and

(ii) if he holds the premises under a lease or other contract of tenancy, inform the immediate landlord or his agent.

(5) In sections 56 and 57 of the Principal Act, the word “food” shall be construed, in addition to referring to any individual food, as referring to any class whatsoever of food.

(6) This section and the repeal by section 5 of this Act of section 55 of the Principal Act shall be deemed to have come into operation on the day on which Part V of the Principal Act came into operation.

Amendment of section 65 of Principal Act.

39. —Section 65 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the deletion of the definition of “substance” in subsection (1) and the substitution therefor of the following:

“the word ‘substance’ means a natural or artificial substance, whether in solid or liquid form or in the form of a gas or vapour, including a preparation or manufactured article or article which has been subjected to any artificial treatment or process;”

(b) by the addition at the end of subsection (3) of the following paragraph—

“(j) the enforcement and execution of the regulations—

(i) by officers of the Minister,

(ii) by health authorities and their officers,

(iii) with the consent of the Minister for Finance, by officers of Customs and Excise,

(iv) with the consent of the Minister for Industry and Commerce, by officers of that Minister.”

(c) by the addition at the end of subsection (5) of the words “or by the health authority in whose functional area the offence is committed.”.

Amendment of section 66 of Principal Act.

40. —Section 66 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the addition at the end of subsection (9) of the words “or by the health authority in whose functional area the offence is committed.”.

Amendment of section 98 of Principal Act.

41. —Section 98 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the deletion in subsection (1) of the words “to give to the Minister when so required by him advice on matters affecting or incidental to the health of the people” and the substitution therefor of the words “to advise the Minister on such general matters affecting or incidental to the health of the people as may be referred to them by the Minister and on such other general matters (other than conditions of employment of officers and servants and the amount or payment of grants or allowances) relating to the operation of the health services as they think fit”;

(b) by the deletion in subsection (4) of the words “the National Health Council or of”;

(c) by the addition of the following subsections:—

“(7) Not less than half of the persons who are appointed to be members of the National Health Council shall be appointed by the Minister on nominations of bodies which, in the opinion of the Minister, are representative of the medical and ancillary professions (including particular branches thereof) and of persons concerned with the management of voluntary hospitals.

(8) The members of the National Health Council holding office on the 31st day of March, 1954, shall go out of office at the end of that day and the like provision shall have effect with respect to the 31st day of March in the year 1956 and in every second year thereafter.

(9) The National Health Council shall appoint one of their members to act as chairman of the Council.

(10) The quorum for a meeting of the National Health Council shall be one-third of the members, or, if the number of members is not divisible by three, one-third of the next higher number which is divisible by three.

(11) The National Health Council may, by standing orders or otherwise, regulate their own procedure.

(12) The National Health Council shall meet at least once in each quarter of the year.

(13) The National Health Council shall meet—

(i) at such times as they may be requested by the Minister to meet,

(ii) subject to subsection (14) of this section, at such times as may be determined by the Council, and

(iii) subject to subsection (14) of this section, upon a requisition to call a meeting of the Council, signed by a number of members not less than the quorum of the Council being presented to the secretary to the Council.

(14) Where three or more meetings of the National Health Council have been held in any quarter, a further meeting shall not be held in that quarter save at the request of, or with the consent of, the Minister.

(15) Every meeting of the National Health Council shall be held in private.

(16) The National Health Council may present each year to the Minister an annual report and the Minister shall publish the report with such comments (if any) as he thinks fit.

(17) The Minister shall request the advice of the National Health Council on any regulations which he proposes to make under the Health Acts, 1947 and 1953, or under the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 , except where he is satisfied that the making of the regulations is a matter of urgency and, in such a case, he shall request the advice of the Council on the regulations as soon as may be after they are made.

(18) The Minister shall appoint a person to act as secretary to the National Health Council.”

Amendment of section 103 of Principal Act.

42. —Section 103 of the Principal Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution of “the Minister” for “the Minister for Local Government” in subsection (1), and

(b) by the addition to the section of the following subsection:

“(4) The amount standing at any particular time borrowed by a health authority under this section shall not exceed such sum as may be fixed in respect of that time for that health authority by an order made by the Minister with the consent of the Minister for Local Government.”

Amendment of section 104 of Principal Act.

43. —Subsection (2) of section 104 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of “or other means of transport” before “provided”.

Prosecution of certain offences.

44. —An offence under Part V, Part VIII or Part IX of the Principal Act may be prosecuted by the health authority in whose functional area the offence is committed.