Article 1
This set of Regulations is formulated in accordance with regulations of Paragraph 4, Article 14 of the Communicable Disease Control Act (hereafter referred to as the Act).
Article 2
Division of the regions of the Communicable Disease Control Medical Network specified in this set of Regulations is as shown in the Appendix.
Article 3
The central competent authority may assign one commanding officer and one deputy commanding officer in each communicable disease control medical network region.
Article 4
Regional commanding officer shall, by the instructions of the central competent authority, implement the following matters; the regional deputy commanding officer shall assist him or her:
1. review the relevant plans of the communicable disease control medical network of each region;
2. supervise, evaluate local competent authorities, medical care institutions on matters concerning communicable disease control;
3. other matters upon instruction.
Regional commanding officer may invite experts and scholars in medical care, infection control, public health, and representatives of local competent authorities concerned to provide counseling opinions on matters concerning communicable disease control in the said region.
Article 5
During the time the central epidemic command center is in existence, the regional commanding officer shall command as a whole the following matters; the regional deputy commanding officer shall assist him/her.
1. Case analysis, investigation of epidemic situations, and infection control in medical institutions in the region;
2. Designation, expropriation, requisition and allocation of hospitals, hospital beds and manpower in the region;
3. Activating medical institutions for the isolation care of patients of communicable diseases;
4. Other matters to be implemented upon instructions.
Article 6
For retaining and treating patients with communicable diseases requiring isolation, competent authorities may designate isolation hospitals and assign responding hospitals from them.
Administrative procedures for the designation of hospitals mentioned in the preceding Paragraph may be one of the following:
1. Local competent authorities shall, based on the specific conditions of the region, distribution of medical care facilities, software and hardware of hospitals and their capacities, designate appropriate medical care institutions to be isolation hospitals and designate, appropriate isolation hospitals for the specific disease control needs of the region, responding hospitals.
2. Regional commanding officer shall select after reviewing the distribution of medical care resources of the region, appropriate medical care institutions from the aforementioned list of isolation hospitals and report the selected medical care institutions to the central competent authority to designate the medical care institutions as responding hospitals.
3. Designated directly by the central competent authority.
Article 7
Isolation hospitals shall employ infectious disease specialists certificated by the Taiwan Infection Medicine Society or specialists certified by other medical societies approved by the central competent authority.
Article 8
Principles of accepting and caring for patients of communicable diseases by isolation hospitals are as follows.
1. Patients of Category I and Category V communicable diseases shall, in principle, be admitted and treated at the responding hospitals.
2. Patients of Category II, Category III and Category IV communicable diseases may, when necessary, be admitted and treated in isolation hospitals.
At time of no communicable disease epidemics, the communicable disease isolation wards of the hospitals mentioned in the preceding Paragraph may be used as general wards.
During the period when the central epidemic command center is in operation, the places where patients are to be admitted and treated shall be decided upon instructions of the commanding officer of the center.
Article 9
Designation of isolation hospitals are valid for three years; upon expiration, extension may be made once, or re-designation is made.
For isolation hospitals with one of the following conditions, the central competent authority may change or annul their designation:
1. Isolation wards not meeting regulations of Subparagraph 2, Paragraph 2 of Article 6.
2. Not meeting regulations of Article 7.
Article 10
Isolation hospitals shall fully coordinate with the communicable disease control medical network policy of the competent authorities, and their review and inspection of the installations, facilities and protective devices and their operational quality.
Article 11
Local competent authorities and responding hospitals shall, at ordinary time, establish files and make mobilization plans for the manpower, supplies, facilities and transportation means at their disposal; drills may be conducted to verify.
Article 12
During the period when the central epidemic command center is in operation, isolation hospitals shall, upon instructions of the commanding officer of the center or regional commanding officer, admit and treat with priority patients of communicable diseases, and initiate activation when necessary.
During the period mentioned in the preceding Paragraph, medical care institutions at various levels and isolation institutions established by instructions of the commanding officer of the center shall operate in coordination with the communicable disease control medical network.
When regional commanding officer, upon assessment, deems necessary to activate isolation hospitals or to request for cross-regional assistance, shall report in writing for approval to the commanding officer of the center; at time of emergency, report may be made orally, and written documents submitted within three days after the activation.
Activation is concluded on the day instructed by the commanding officer of the center or on the day the central epidemic command center is dissolved. Command center may inform initially the activated hospitals orally, and send written document within three days after the activation is dissolved.
Article 13
Competent authorities may, at their own discretion, subsidize personnel training and drills of responding hospitals and the procurement and maintenance costs of the facilities and equipment of the isolation wards in responding hospitals.
When the operation of an isolation hospital is affected due to the hospital being activated to admit and treat patients with communicable diseases in accordance with the preceding article, the central competent authority may subsidize the difference between the total medical cost of the National Health Insurance of the affected hospital in that period of the year and that reported during the same period in the previous year when it was not activated. However, if the Central Epidemic Command Center has been in operation for more than one year, the Central Epidemic Command Center may follow the instructions of the commander to subsidize the difference between the total medical expense of the National Health Insurance of the affected hospital in that period of the year and that reported during the same period of the previous year when it was not activated or in the year before the establishment of the Central Epidemic Command Center.
The duration of the subsidy is from the month of activation to three months after the month of the deactivation.
Article 14
This set of Regulations shall be implemented on the date of the promulgation.
Article amended and promulgated on December 21, 2021 shall be implemented on May 14, 2021.