s 59A National public health research
59A. —(1) The Director-General of Health may, if the Director-General of Health considers it to be in the public interest, from time to time undertake or facilitate any research that the Director-General of Health thinks is necessary to increase or acquire new knowledge on, or to discover or create new or improved materials, devices, processes or products for the detection, prevention or treatment of — ( a ) any infectious disease; or ( b ) any other disease which is, or which the appropriate Minister suspects to be, of an infectious nature, and which the appropriate Minister, by notification in the Gazette , declares to be a disease to which this section applies. [10/2008; 5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (2) In deciding whether to undertake or facilitate any research under subsection (1), the Director-General of Health must consider the extent to which all or any of the following factors exist: ( a ) whether there is an outbreak or a significant likelihood of an outbreak in Singapore of the disease to which the research relates; ( b ) whether the disease to which the research relates poses a substantial risk of a significant number of human fatalities or incidents of serious disability in Singapore; ( c ) whether the new knowledge that may be acquired or the new or improved materials, devices, processes or products that may be discovered or created as a result of the research will result in any significant public health benefit to Singapore. [10/2008; 5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (3) For the purposes of any national public health research, the Director-General of Health may — ( a ) require any person or class of persons to provide the Director-General of Health, within such time as the Director-General of Health may specify, with — (i) such information in the possession or control of that person or any person in that class of persons as the Director-General of Health may consider necessary or appropriate; and [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] (ii) any sample (including any human sample) in the possession or control of that person or any person in that class of persons, whether taken pursuant to this Act or otherwise, as the Director-General of Health may consider necessary or appropriate; [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] ( b ) require any medical practitioner, over such period as the Director-General of Health may specify, to obtain, with the requisite consent, such information or samples (including human samples) as the Director-General of Health may consider necessary or appropriate from the patients under the medical practitioner’s care, and to provide the information or samples to the Director-General of Health; [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] ( ba ) impose any condition that the Director-General of Health thinks fit on any person mentioned in paragraph ( a ) or any medical practitioner mentioned in paragraph ( b ) relating to the provision or obtaining of the information or sample; and [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] ( c ) use any other information or samples obtained by the Director-General of Health under this Act. [10/2008; 5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (4) Where any person is required by the Director-General of Health to furnish any information or human sample under subsection (3), the person must cause the information or human sample to be anonymised before it is furnished to the Director-General of Health, unless the Director-General of Health directs otherwise. [10/2008; 5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (5) For the purpose of any national public health research, the Director-General of Health may do all or any of the following: ( a ) send any information or sample received by the Director-General of Health under this Act to a third party to carry out such test, examination or analysis as the Director-General of Health may consider necessary; [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] ( b ) provide any information or sample received by the Director-General of Health under this Act to a third party who is engaged in any national public health research; [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] ( c ) impose any conditions that the Director-General of Health thinks fit on the third party mentioned in paragraph ( a ) or ( b ). [5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (6) If the Director-General of Health is satisfied that any national public health research can be carried out only if any individually‑identifiable information or individually‑identifiable human sample is provided under this section, the Director-General of Health may require, use, send or provide that individually‑identifiable information or individually‑identifiable human sample under this section for the purposes of the national public health research. [5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (7) It shall be an offence for any person (including any person in a class of persons) — ( a ) without reasonable excuse, to refuse to provide any information or sample when required to do so by the Director-General of Health under subsection (3); [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] ( b ) to deliberately identify or attempt to identify, from any anonymised information or human sample received by the person from the Director-General of Health pursuant to subsection (5), the identity of the individual to whom the information relates or from whom the human sample was obtained; or [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] ( c ) to breach any condition imposed under subsection (3) or (5). [10/2008] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] (8) In this section — “anonymised”, in relation to any information or human sample, means the removal of identifying details from the information or sample so that the identity of the individual from whom the information or sample was obtained cannot be readily discovered or ascertained by the recipient of the information or sample; “human sample” means a specimen of any substance or matter obtained from any individual; “national public health research” means any research that the Director-General of Health decides to undertake or facilitate under subsection (1); [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] “requisite consent” means — ( a ) the consent, given in the prescribed form and manner, of the person from whom any information or sample is to be obtained under subsection (3)( b ); or ( b ) where the person mentioned in paragraph ( a ) is unable to give his or her own consent because of age, infirmity of mind or body or any other cause, the consent, given in the prescribed form and manner, of such other individual who is authorised by the regulations to give consent for and on behalf of the person. [10/2008; 5/2019] —(1) The Director-General of Health may, if the Director-General of Health considers it to be in the public interest, from time to time undertake or facilitate any research that the Director-General of Health thinks is necessary to increase or acquire new knowledge on, or to discover or create new or improved materials, devices, processes or products for the detection, prevention or treatment of — ( a ) any infectious disease; or ( b ) any other disease which is, or which the appropriate Minister suspects to be, of an infectious nature, and which the appropriate Minister, by notification in the Gazette , declares to be a disease to which this section applies. [10/2008; 5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (2) In deciding whether to undertake or facilitate any research under subsection (1), the Director-General of Health must consider the extent to which all or any of the following factors exist: ( a ) whether there is an outbreak or a significant likelihood of an outbreak in Singapore of the disease to which the research relates; ( b ) whether the disease to which the research relates poses a substantial risk of a significant number of human fatalities or incidents of serious disability in Singapore; ( c ) whether the new knowledge that may be acquired or the new or improved materials, devices, processes or products that may be discovered or created as a result of the research will result in any significant public health benefit to Singapore. [10/2008; 5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (3) For the purposes of any national public health research, the Director-General of Health may — ( a ) require any person or class of persons to provide the Director-General of Health, within such time as the Director-General of Health may specify, with — (i) such information in the possession or control of that person or any person in that class of persons as the Director-General of Health may consider necessary or appropriate; and [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] (ii) any sample (including any human sample) in the possession or control of that person or any person in that class of persons, whether taken pursuant to this Act or otherwise, as the Director-General of Health may consider necessary or appropriate; [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] ( b ) require any medical practitioner, over such period as the Director-General of Health may specify, to obtain, with the requisite consent, such information or samples (including human samples) as the Director-General of Health may consider necessary or appropriate from the patients under the medical practitioner’s care, and to provide the information or samples to the Director-General of Health; [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] ( ba ) impose any condition that the Director-General of Health thinks fit on any person mentioned in paragraph ( a ) or any medical practitioner mentioned in paragraph ( b ) relating to the provision or obtaining of the information or sample; and [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] ( c ) use any other information or samples obtained by the Director-General of Health under this Act. [10/2008; 5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (4) Where any person is required by the Director-General of Health to furnish any information or human sample under subsection (3), the person must cause the information or human sample to be anonymised before it is furnished to the Director-General of Health, unless the Director-General of Health directs otherwise. [10/2008; 5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (5) For the purpose of any national public health research, the Director-General of Health may do all or any of the following: ( a ) send any information or sample received by the Director-General of Health under this Act to a third party to carry out such test, examination or analysis as the Director-General of Health may consider necessary; [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] ( b ) provide any information or sample received by the Director-General of Health under this Act to a third party who is engaged in any national public health research; [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] ( c ) impose any conditions that the Director-General of Health thinks fit on the third party mentioned in paragraph ( a ) or ( b ). [5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (6) If the Director-General of Health is satisfied that any national public health research can be carried out only if any individually‑identifiable information or individually‑identifiable human sample is provided under this section, the Director-General of Health may require, use, send or provide that individually‑identifiable information or individually‑identifiable human sample under this section for the purposes of the national public health research. [5/2019] [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] (7) It shall be an offence for any person (including any person in a class of persons) — ( a ) without reasonable excuse, to refuse to provide any information or sample when required to do so by the Director-General of Health under subsection (3); [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] ( b ) to deliberately identify or attempt to identify, from any anonymised information or human sample received by the person from the Director-General of Health pursuant to subsection (5), the identity of the individual to whom the information relates or from whom the human sample was obtained; or [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] ( c ) to breach any condition imposed under subsection (3) or (5). [10/2008] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] [Act 13 of 2024 wef 09/04/2024] (8) In this section — “anonymised”, in relation to any information or human sample, means the removal of identifying details from the information or sample so that the identity of the individual from whom the information or sample was obtained cannot be readily discovered or ascertained by the recipient of the information or sample; “human sample” means a specimen of any substance or matter obtained from any individual; “national public health research” means any research that the Director-General of Health decides to undertake or facilitate under subsection (1); [Act 11 of 2023 wef 01/05/2023] “requisite consent” means — ( a ) the consent, given in the prescribed form and manner, of the person from whom any information or sample is to be obtained under subsection (3)( b ); or ( b ) where the person mentioned in paragraph ( a ) is unable to give his or her own consent because of age, infirmity of mind or body or any other cause, the consent, given in the prescribed form and manner, of such other individual who is authorised by the regulations to give consent for and on behalf of the person. [10/2008; 5/2019]