Philippine HIV and AIDS Policy Act

Section 49

The following discriminatory acts and practices shall be prohibited: (a) Discrimination in the Workplace. - The rejection of job application, termination of employment, or other discriminatory policies in hiring, provision of employment and other related benefit, promotion or assignment of an individual solely or partially on the basis of actual, perceived, or suspected HIV status; (b) Discrimination in Learning Institution. - Refusal of admission, expulsion, segregation, imposition of harsher disciplinary actions, or denial of benefits or services of student or a prospective student solely or partially on the basis of actual, perceived, or suspected HIV status; (c) Restriction on Travel and Habitation. - Restrictions on travel within the Philippines, refusal of lawful entry to Philippine territory, deportation from Philippines, or the quarantine or enforced isolation of travelers solely or partially on account of actual, perceived, or suspected HIV status is discriminatory. The same standard of protection shall be accorded to migrants, visitors, and residents who are not Filipino citizens; (d) Restrictions on Shelter. - Restrictions on housing or lodging, whether permanent or temporary, solely or partially on the basis of actual, perceived, or suspected HIV status; (e) Prohibition from Seeking or Holding Public Office. - Prohibition on the right to seek an elective or appointive public office solely or partially on the basis of actual, perceived, or suspected HIV status; (f) Exclusion from Credit and Insurance Services. - Exclusion from health, accident or life insurance, or credit and loan services, including the extension of such loan or insurance facilities, of an individual solely or partially on the basis of actual, perceived, or suspected HIV status: Provided, That the PLHIV has not concealed or misrepresented the fact to the insurance company or loan or credit service provider upon application; (g) Discrimination in Hospitals and Health Institutions. - Denial of health services, or being charges with a higher fee, on the basis of actual, perceived or suspected HIV status is discriminatory act and is prohibited; (h) Denial of Burial Services. Denial of embalming and burial services for a deceased person who had HIV and AIDS or who was known, suspected, or perceived to be HIV-positive; (i) Act of Bullying. - Bullying in all forms, including name-calling, upon a person based on actual, perceived, or suspected HIV status, including bullying in social media and other online portals; and (j) Other similar or analogous discriminatory acts.1avvphi1

Section 50

Penalties. (a) Any person who commits the prohibited act under Section 22 of this Act on misinformation on HIV and AIDS shall, upon conviction, suffer the penalty of imprisonment ranging from one (1) year but not more than ten (10) years a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (50,000.00) but not more than Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00), or both, at the discretion if the court: Provided, That if the offender is a manufacturer, importer or distributor of any drugs, devices, agents, and other health products found in violation of Section 21 of this Act may be seized and held in custody when the FDA Director-General has reasonable cause to believe facts found by him/her or an authorized officer or employee of the FDA that such health products may cause injury or prejudice to the consuming public; (b) Any person who violates the second sentence of Section 24 of this Act on police operations vis-à-vis comprehensive health intervention for key populations shall upon conviction, suffer the penalty of imprisonment of one (1) year to five (5) years, and a fine of not less than One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00), but not more than Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00): Provided, That the law enforcement agents found guilty shall be removed from public service; (c) Any person who knowingly or negligently causes another to get infected with HIV in the course of the practice of profession through unsafe and unsanitary practice and procedure, or who compelled any person to undergo HIV testing without his or her consent shall, upon conviction, suffer the penalty of imprisonment of six (6) to twelve (12) years, without prejudice to the imposition of fines and administrative sanctions, such as suspension or revocation of professional licenses; The permit or license of the business entity and the accreditation of the HIV testing centers may cancelled or withdrawn if these establishments fail to maintain safe practices and procedures as may be required by the guidelines formulated in compliance with Section 26, on blood, tissue, or organ donations, and Section 28, on medical management, surgical, and other related procedures; (d) Any person who violates Section 41 of this Act, on the protection of HIV and AIDS service providers from harassment shall, upon conviction, suffer the penalty of imprisonment of six (6) months to five (5) years, and a fine of not less than One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00), but not less that Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00): Provided, That if the person who violates this provision is a law enforcement agent or a public official, administrative sanctions may be imposed in addition to imprisonment and/or fine, at the discretion of the court; (e) Any person, natural or juridical, who violates the provisions of Section 42 of this Act on health insurance and similar services shall, upon conviction, suffer the penalty of imprisonment of six (6)months to five (5) years, and/or a fine of not less than Fifty thousand (P50,000.00), at the discretion of the court, and without prejudice to the imposition of administrative sanctions such as fines, suspensions or revocation of business permit, business license or accreditation, and professional license; (f) Any person who violates the provisions of Section 44 of this Act on confidentiality shall, upon conviction, suffer the following penalties: (1) Six months to two (2) years of imprisonment for any person who breaches confidentiality, and/or a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000.00), but not more than One hundred fifty thousand pesos (P150,000.00), at the discretion of the court; (2) Two years and one (1) day to five (5) years of imprisonment for any person who causes the mass dissemination of the HIV status of a person, including spreading the information online or making statements to the media, and/or a fine of not less than One hundred fifty thousand pesos (P150,000.00), but not more than Three hundred fifty thousand pesos (P350,000.00), at the discretion of the court; and (3) Five years and one (1) day to seven (7) years of imprisonment for any health professional, medical instructor, worker, employer, recruitment agency, insurance company, data encoder, and other custodian of any medical record, file, data, or test result who breaches confidentiality, and/or a fine of not less than Three hundred fifty thousand pesos (P350,000.00), but not more than Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00), at the discretion of the court. These penalties are without prejudice to any administrative sanction or civil suit that may be brought against persons who violate confidentiality under this Act.1âwphi1 (g) Any person who shall violate any of the provisions in Section 49 on discriminatory acts and practices shall, upon conviction, suffer the penalty of imprisonment of six (6) months to five (5) years, and/or a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000.00), but not more than Five hundred thousand (P500,000.00), at the discretion of the court, and without prejudice to the imposition of administrative sanctions such as fines, suspension or revocation of business permit, business license or accreditation, and professional license; and (h) Any person who has obtained knowledge of confidential HIV and AIDS information and uses such information to malign or cause damage injury, or loss to another person shall face liability under Articles 19, 20, 21 and 26 of the new Civil Code of the Philippines and relevant provisions of Republic Act No. 10173, otherwise known as the "Data Privacy Act of 2012". If the offender is a corporation, association, partnership or any other juridical persons, the penalty of imprisonment shall be imposed upon the responsible officers and employees, as the case may be, who participated in, or allowed by their gross negligence, the commission on the crime, and a fine shall be imposed jointly and severally on the juridical person and the responsible officers and/or employees. Furthermore, the court may suspend or revoke its license or business permit. If the offender is an alien, he/she shall, in addition to the penalties prescribed herein, be deported without further proceedings after serving penalties herein prescribed. If the offender is a public official or employee, he/she shall, in addition to the penalties herein, suffer perpetual or temporary absolute disqualification from office, as the case may be.

Section 51

The penalties collected pursuant to this section shall be put into a special fund to be administered by the PNAC, and shall be use for initial interventions required to address gaps in the national response on the part of government agencies and its partners from civil society and international organizations in accordance with Section 5(l) of this Act.