Article 20 of the Saudi AIDS Prevention Law
المادة 20 من نظام الوقاية من متلازمة العوز المناعي المكتسب الإيدز وحقوق المصابين وواجباتهم
The article obliges the Ministry of Health and other health bodies to take the measures needed to encourage individuals to take voluntary AIDS tests, as a step toward early intervention and control.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
تتخذ الوزارة والجهات الصحية الأخرى الإجراءات اللازمة لتشجيع الأفراد على إجراء الفحوص الطوعية للكشف عن الإصابة بالإيدز بين أفراد المجتمع حتى يُمكِن اتخاذ التدابير المناسبة للتدخل المبكر والمكافحة.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 20 explained in plain English
Alongside the cases of imposed testing, this article is concerned with voluntary testing, that is, testing a person takes by their own choice.
The bodies bound: the Ministry of Health and the other health bodies. Under Article 1, health bodies are any public or private body that provides health care.
The duty: to take the measures needed to encourage individuals to take voluntary tests to detect AIDS infection among members of society.
The aim: that those concerned can take suitable measures for early intervention and control.
Nature of the testing: this article concerns encouraging individuals to be tested by their own choice, without compulsion, which differs from the cases in which the Law regulates imposed testing.
What the article does not specify: the text does not specify the form of the encouraging measures or the places of testing.
Relation to other articles: this article is connected to Article 19, which provides for moving an infected person who is doing work in which it is feared they may infect others to the nearest suitable work, and to Article 21, which bars any act or omission that constitutes discrimination against persons living with the disease; protecting them from discrimination encourages people to come forward for testing.
The article is addressed to the Ministry and the health bodies, and does not oblige individuals to be tested.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 20 of the Saudi AIDS Prevention Law
What is voluntary testing?
It is testing that an individual takes by their own choice to detect infection, and the Ministry and the health bodies are bound to encourage it.
What is the aim of encouraging voluntary testing?
To make it possible to take suitable measures for early intervention and control.
More articles on AIDS Testing and Reporting Infection
- Article 5
The article tasks the National Program with activating prevention, care and treatment and designating reference laboratories, and requires health bodies to send suspected samples to them and to report all infected cases to the Ministry confidentially.
1- يقوم البرنامج الوطني - بالتنسيق مع الجهات الصحية الأخرى - بتفعيل إجراءات الوقاية والرعاية والتأهيل، وتحديد المختبرات المرجعية للتشخيص، والتثبت من الإصابة بال
- Article 9
The article bars imposing an AIDS test except in specific cases, including applicants to health colleges, health and military jobs, pre-marital checks and pregnant women, without prejudice to Article 13.
مع عدم الإخلال بما ورد في المادة (الثالثة عشرة) من هذا النظام، لا يجوز فرض اختبار الإيدز إلا في الحالات الآتية: 1- المتقدمين للكليات والمعاهد الصحية المدنية وال
- Article 13
The article obliges the Ministry of Health to take the necessary measures to test those coming to the Kingdom for work or residence to ensure they are free of AIDS, and refers the testing procedures and their effects to the Implementing Regulations.
مع عدم الإخلال بالإجراءات المتبعة خارج المملكة لفحص الراغبين في القدوم للعمل أو الإقامة في المملكة, تتخذ الوزارة الإجراءات اللازمة لفحص القادمين إلى المملكة بقص
- Article 15
The article obliges health bodies to test a suspected person to ensure they are free of AIDS and provide health care to them, requires notifying the National Program if they refuse testing, and refers the procedures to the Implementing Regulations.
على الجهات الصحية إجراء الفحص على المشتبه فيه, للتأكد من خلوه من الإيدز, وتقديم الرعاية الصحية له, لضمان عدم انتقال المرض إلى غيره, فإن رفض المشتبه فيه إجراء ال
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.