The Federal National Council in the United Arab Emirates has approved a new draft law aimed at combating communicable diseases, marking a significant legislative step toward strengthening the country’s public health protection framework and limiting the spread of infectious diseases across society, as the proposed law establishes a comprehensive legal structure for dealing with contagious illnesses and outlines clear professional and health obligations for healthcare workers and individuals alike, while also introducing four main categories of penalties designed to ensure strict compliance with preventive and regulatory measures implemented by the country’s health authorities, reflecting the UAE’s ongoing commitment to strengthening preparedness and safeguarding community health against potential epidemiological threats.

The draft legislation defines a communicable disease as an infectious illness caused by the transmission of a pathogenic agent such as bacteria viruses parasites or fungi or their toxic products or secretions which can be transmitted directly or indirectly from a human animal or environmental source to a susceptible host whether human or animal and this definition aims to establish a clear scientific and legal basis for identifying diseases covered under the law enabling health authorities to implement appropriate surveillance prevention and response measures to control outbreaks and respond quickly to suspected or confirmed cases of infectious diseases.

Article thirty seven of the draft law sets out the penalties related to the reporting of communicable diseases stating that any physician pharmacist pharmacy technician or other healthcare professional working in either the public or private sector who fails to immediately report to the relevant authority within no more than eight hours after becoming aware of or suspecting a case of infection or death related to any communicable disease listed under Section A of Schedule One attached to the law will be subject to a fine ranging from thirty thousand dirhams to one hundred thousand dirhams and the same article also stipulates a fine of up to ten thousand dirhams for healthcare professionals who fail to report diseases listed under Section B within twenty four hours of becoming aware of the infection or diseases listed under Section C within five working days.

Article thirty eight of the proposed law states that the parent or guardian of a child or any individual responsible for the child’s care may face a fine ranging from five thousand to twenty thousand dirhams if they refuse or neglect to provide the child with any vaccinations mandated by the Ministry of Health under the national immunization program and this provision aims to strengthen community compliance with vaccination initiatives which are widely recognized as one of the most effective public health tools to prevent the spread of infectious diseases particularly among children while maintaining strong levels of herd immunity within the wider population.

The legislation also introduces strict penalties for individuals who knowingly contribute to the spread of infectious diseases as Article thirty nine imposes a fine ranging from twenty thousand to one hundred thousand dirhams on any infected or suspected individual listed in Schedule One if it is proven that they knowingly traveled or moved to another location outside a healthcare facility without obtaining approval from the Ministry of Health or the relevant health authority or failed to inform the operator of the transportation method they were using or did not comply with required preventive conditions while Article forty further stipulates that any person who knowingly carries a communicable disease and deliberately engages in behavior that results in transmitting the infection to others may face imprisonment for up to four years and a fine ranging from fifty thousand to one hundred thousand dirhams with the maximum penalty doubled in cases of repeated offenses while the punishment may reach life imprisonment if the transmission of the disease leads to the death of the infected person.