Ministerial Statement by the Minister of the Health, The Honourable Kim Wilson, CA, CPA, JP, MP

Overview of the Bill

Mr. Speaker, the Quarantine Amendment Act 2017 and Quarantine (Maritime and Air) Regulations 2017 were tabled on 8^th September 2017.

Mr. Speaker, the Quarantine Amendment Act 2017 will provide consequential amendments to the Quarantine Act 2017, the Bermuda Immigration and Protection Act 1956 and the Public Health Act 1949. As you may recall, the Quarantine Act 2017, which was enacted on 24^th April 2017 introduced the structure for the island’s global public health response by adopting the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Health Regulations (IHR) 2005. The IHR 2005 was signed by member states of the WHO, including the United Kingdom, which extended the agreement to Bermuda in 2007, and provides a new public health security framework to address the spread of communicable diseases due to the movement of travellers, ships and aircraft.

The purpose of the IHR 2005 was to introduce a more flexible and responsive approach to the global communicable disease threats such as SARS at the time. The Amendment Act and Quarantine (Maritime and Air) Regulations 2017 will provide the guidance for enforcement of the security structure and ensure our ports and airports create the first line of defence from global public health threats. As a whole, the Act and Regulations will modernize and strengthen our response to international public health threats. 

Mr. Speaker, the amendments to the Quarantine Act 2017 will allow the Quarantine Authority, which is the Minister of Health, to land a traveller with a communicable disease in Bermuda. Being able to land a traveller, will allow for them to be transferred for treatment at a hospital or temporary isolation clinic. In addition, the Act has been amended to identify any necessary forms in support of the Quarantine Act to be available on our website: www.gov.bm.

Mr. Speaker, in order to provide the Quarantine Authority the responsibility of landing a traveller with a communicable disease, the Bermuda Immigration and Protection Act 1956 (BIPA) must subsequently be amended. Currently, the Governor, who has delegated the function to the Department of Immigration, can land a traveller with a communicable disease. With the changes, the Quarantine Authority will now have the responsibility for exceptionable persons under BIPA where such persons are suffering or suspected of suffering with a communicable disease.

Mr. Speaker, the Quarantine Amendment Act 2017 will also change the Public Health Act 1949 to allow the Minister of Health to establish temporary isolation hospitals or clinics for persons with a communicable disease and will not require proof of an “epidemic”. Epidemics are not a commensurate threshold to trigger a proportionate response for rapid local containment of emerging international communicable disease threats. SARS demonstrated how rapidly international disease threats can emerge and travel and the ability to establish isolation hospitals or clinics, provide a health officer with options when treating travellers, which may include an incubation period that does not require the automatic transfer to our hospital.

Mr. Speaker, I now take the opportunity to also move that the Quarantine (Maritime and Air) Regulations 2017 be considered. Considering the length of the regulations, I will only highlight the changes being introduced by the regulations and will not give a clause by clause explanation. The Quarantine (Maritime and Air) Regulations 2017 will repeal and replace the Quarantine (Maritime) Regulations 1946 and Quarantine (Air) Regulations 1946 and the Public Health (Quarantine Stations) Regulations 1926, which were outdated in their approach to public health threats. The new Regulations will streamline the procedures required at both the airport and ports, provide the key structure to the security, ensure the roles of the Health Officers are outlined and the rights and responsibilities of travellers are enshrined in law. The Regulations introduce a flexible and updated method of preventing, controlling and responding to a public health threat that ensures the safety, and rights, of all involved.

In addition, the Quarantine (Maritime and Air) Regulations 2017 introduce responsibilities for health officers to:

• Stop persons from disembarking from conveyances arriving in Bermuda on which a communicable disease has been reported;
• Ensure conveyance operators take measures to prevent the introduction of vectors and infection into Bermuda;
• Obtain travel information from passengers, screen,  provide health assessments and if necessary detain travellers;
• Transfer travellers to a hospital or isolation clinic for treatment;
• Ensure bags and cargo are screened and inspected as necessary;
• Implement any recommendations provided by WHO on the handling of specific communicable diseases.

The Regulations will provide a review process for any detained travellers by the Quarantine Authority and the Supreme Court if necessary.

Mr. Speaker, the new Regulations will retain the responsibility from the Quarantine (Maritime) Regulations 1946 and the Quarantine (Air) Regulations 1946 for a master of a ship or commander of an aircraft – now conveyance operators - to provide a declaration of health. However, under the new Regulations the conveyance operators will only have to submit the form if there has been a public health threat reported on board, if the ship or aircraft is coming from an affected country or a death was reported on board.

Mr. Speaker, the new Regulations will allow health officers to stop the disembarking of passengers and crew from a ship or aircraft as did the 1946 Regulations. However, in the new Regulations health officers will only have this ability where a public health threat has been reported on board, a death was reported or the conveyance is coming from an affected country. Otherwise, the Quarantine (Air and Maritime) Regulations 2017 represent a replacement of outdated legislative provisions.

Mr. Speaker, in the last few years Bermuda has responded to potential threats from communicable diseases including Ebola and Zika. The problem for any legislation seeking to protect our shores from these threats is the constantly changing nature of communicable diseases. Today it is Zika and tomorrow it may be a disease we have never heard of and which will require a flexible public health response. The Quarantine (Maritime and Air) Regulations 2017 along with the Quarantine Amendment Act 2017, provide that flexibility, while also allowing for international best practices to be followed.

Mr. Speaker, the Quarantine (Maritime and Air ) Regulations 2017 fulfil the need in the Quarantine Act 2017 to have core capacities at our entry points, a flexible, but robust response to public health events and introduce modern intervention techniques for travellers, baggage and conveyances.

Mr. Speaker, I move that the Regulations be approved, and that a message be sent from this Honourable House to the Governor that these Regulations be approved.

With those brief introductory remarks, I will take my seat, Mr. Speaker.