Article 5 of the Saudi AIDS Prevention Law

المادة 5 من نظام الوقاية من متلازمة العوز المناعي المكتسب الإيدز وحقوق المصابين وواجباتهم

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.

Official text (Arabic)

This article has not been amended since the law was issued.

1- يقوم البرنامج الوطني - بالتنسيق مع الجهات الصحية الأخرى - بتفعيل إجراءات الوقاية والرعاية والتأهيل، وتحديد المختبرات المرجعية للتشخيص، والتثبت من الإصابة بالفيروس، وتقديم العلاج للمصابين به، وإيضاح طرق الوقاية منه.

2- على الجهات الصحية إرسال العينات المشتبه في إيجابيتها إلى المختبرات المرجعية التي يحددها البرنامج الوطني للتثبت من الإصابة بالفيروس. وفي جميع الأحوال يجب إبلاغ الجهات المعنية في الوزارة بطريقة سرية بجميع الحالات المصابة، وتحدد اللائحة الجهات التي تتلقى التبليغ.

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 5 explained in plain English

This article regulates the role of the National Program and the path of diagnosis and reporting.

Paragraph 1: the duties of the National Program

Under Article 1, the National Program is the National AIDS Control Program in the Ministry of Health, and, in coordination with the other health bodies, it:

Activates the procedures of prevention, care and rehabilitation.
Designates the reference laboratories for diagnosis.
Confirms infection with the virus.
Provides treatment to infected persons.
Explains the ways of prevention.

Paragraph 2: the duties of health bodies

Sending samples: health bodies must send samples suspected of being positive to the reference laboratories the National Program designates, to confirm the infection. Under Article 1, confirmation is confirming the result through the reference laboratories.
Confidential reporting: in all cases the concerned bodies in the Ministry must be informed confidentially of all infected cases. The Regulations specify the bodies that receive the report.

The practical effect: a suspected initial test result is not enough on its own; the sample is sent to the reference laboratory for confirmation. Reporting the infection is also a duty on health bodies, but it is done confidentially, so it must not turn into disclosure of the infected person's information.

This article sits alongside Article 4, which prohibits health bodies from refusing medical care to an infected person because of the infection, and Article 6 on care for the infected pregnant woman. Anyone with a question about their own situation may consult a lawyer specializing in health regulations.

Practical example

A private laboratory in Dammam ran a test for a visitor, and the result was suspected positive. Under the article, the laboratory must send the sample to the reference laboratory designated by the National Program to confirm the infection, and in all cases the concerned bodies in the Ministry must be informed confidentially of infected cases.

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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