On November 12, 2020, the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia adopted the Law on Amendments to the Law on Protection of the Population from Contagious Diseases (hereinafter: the Law), which entered into force on the day of its publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia no. 136/2020, on November 13, 2020.
The most significant changes concern the introduction of measures regarding personal protection from infection, measures of isolation at home and quarantine at home, authorizing the communal inspection and communal militia to supervise the implementation of anti-epidemic measures, as well as introducing the possibility of forming a crisis headquarters under this Law. The Law provides for the possibility of determining the measure of recommended or mandatory immunization in the event of an epidemic of a contagious disease.
- Isolation at home
Isolation at home is a measure that is applied to persons suffering from an contagious disease who do not have symptoms or any signs of the contagious disease, i.e. to persons in whom the severity of the contagious disease does not require hospital treatment, during the period of contagion.
This measure is imposed by a doctor of medicine specializing in infectious diseases or another doctor of medicine, in accordance with the order of the Minister, about which he informs the epidemiologist of the territorially competent institute, i.e. the Institute of Public Health or other competent health institution.
- Quarantine at home
Quarantine at home is a measure applied to healthy persons, which restricts freedom of movement while monitoring the health status of healthy persons who were or are suspected to have been in contact with persons infected by a contagious disease, unless the measure of quarantine that is not at home has been imposed, in accordance with the Law.
The decision on quarantine at home is made by the sanitary inspector on the basis of a written notification given by the doctor – epidemiologist on the persons towards which this measure needs to be imposed, duration of which is determined by the duration of maximum incubation period of a certain contagious disease, starting from the last exposure to the source of infection.
This measure can also be applied to travelers coming from countries with an unfavorable epidemiological situation.
During the time spent in quarantine at home, employees to whom this measure is applied, are entitled to appropriate salary compensation, i.e. salary, in accordance with the law, and the decision of the sanitary inspector on determining the quarantine at home measure serves as a certificate of work inability.
- Personal protection from infection
One of the novelties introduced by the Law is the prescribing of personal protection measures from infection, which imply certain behavior, as well as the abidance to the prescribed personal protection measures in a specific case, both outdoors and indoors.
Furthermore, legal entities and entrepreneurs who perform activities in facilities where other persons reside, are obliged to undertake actions and activities for the application of these measures, as well as to designate a person responsible for the direct application of these measures.
The supervision of the application of these measures is carried out by the sanitary inspection, as well as, in the case of an epidemic of contagious diseases of greater epidemiological significance on a larger scale, by the communal inspection and the communal militia.
- Penal provisions
For non-compliance with the obligations prescribed by the Law, there is a prescribed fine in the amount of RSD 50,000 to RSD 150,000 for natural persons if they, among other things, do not report to the competent health service at the border crossing, or if they do not report to the competent public health institute, as well as in the case of refusal or non-compliance with the quarantine at home measure.
Furthermore, if a natural person does not abide to the measure of personal protection from infection, a fine in the amount of RSD 5,000 is prescribed.
The Law prescribes fines in the amount of RSD 300,000 for legal entities, in the amount of RSD 150,000 for entrepreneurs, as well as in the amount of RSD 50,000 for the responsible person in the legal entity in case of non-compliance with anti-epidemic measures provided by this Law.
The person responsible for the application of personal protection measures from infection will be fined the amount of RSD 30,000 if it does not ensure the direct application of these measures.
If you have any questions or need additional information regarding this topic, we invite you to follow our newsletters and/ or contact Ana Popovic, ana.popovic@zslaw.rs. Partner in the employment department at the Zivkovic Samardzic law office, as well as the regular contact at the Zivkovic Samardzic law office.
NOVINE U ZAKONU O ZAŠTITI STANOVNIŠTVA OD ZARAZNIH BOLESTI
Narodna skupština Republike Srbije usvojila je dana 12. novembra 2020. godine Zakon o izmenama i dopunama Zakona o zaštiti stanovništva od zaraznih bolesti (u daljem tekstu: Zakon), koji je stupio na snagu danom objavljivanja u Službenom glasniku Republike Srbije br. 136/2020, 13. novembra 2020. godine.
Najznačajnije novine odnose se na uvođenje mera lične zaštite od infekcije, kućne izolacije i karantina u kućnim uslovima, davanja ovlašćenja komunalnoj ispekciji i komunalnoj miliciji za kontrolu sprovođenja protivepidemijskih mera kao i uvođenje mogućnosti formiranja kriznog štaba na osnovu ovog Zakona. Zakonom je predviđena mogućnost određivanja mere preporučene ili obavezne imunizacije u slučaju pojave epidemije zarazne bolesti.
- Kućna izolacija
Kućna izolacija je mera koja se, tokom perioda zaraznosti, primenjuje na lica obolela od zarazne bolesti koja nemaju simptome ili znake zarazne bolesti, odnosno na lica kod kojih težina zarazne bolesti ne zahteva lečenje u bolničkim uslovima.
Navedenu meru nalaže doktor medicine specijalista za infektivne bolesti ili drugi doktor medicine u skladu sa naredbom ministra, o čemu obaveštava epidemiologa teritorijalno nadležnog instituta, odnosno zavoda za javno zdravlje ili druge nadležne zdravstvene ustanove.
- Karantin u kućnim uslovima
Karantin u kućnim uslovima je mera koja se primenjuje na zdrava lica, odnosno kojom se ograničava sloboda kretanja uz praćenje zdravstvenog stanja zdravih lica koja su bila ili za koja postoji sumnja da su bila u kontaktu sa licima zaraženim od zarazne bolesti, osim ukoliko se ovim licima ne odredi mera karantina koja nije u kućnim uslovima, u skladu sa Zakonom, koja je i ranije postojala.
Rešenje o karantinu u kućnim uslovima donosi sanitarni inspektor na osnovu pismenog obaveštenja doktora medicine – epidemiologa o licima kojima je potrebno odrediti ovu meru, čije trajanje se određuje prema vremenu trajanja maksimalne inkubacije određene zarazne bolesti, počev od momenta poslednje izloženosti izvoru infekcije.
Ova mera može se primeniti i prema putnicima koji dolaze iz zemalja sa nepovoljnom epidemiloškom situacijom.
Zaposlenim licima kojima je određena ova mera, za vreme provedeno u karantinu u kućnim uslovima pripada odgovarajuća naknada zarade, odnosno plate, u skladu sa zakonom, a rešenje sanitarnog inspektora o određivanju mere karantina istovremeno predstavlja i potvrdu o sprečenosti za rad dok ta mera traje.
- Lična zaštita od infekcije
Jedna od novina koju Zakon uvodi jeste i propisivanje mera lične zaštite od infekcije koje podrazumevaju određeno ponašanje kao i pridržavanje propisanih mera lične zaštite u konkretnom slučaju, kako na otvorenom tako i u zatvorenom prostoru.
Takođe, pravna lica i preduzetnici koji obavljaju delatnost u objektima u kojima borave druga lica, dužni su da preduzmu radnje i aktivnosti radi primene ovih mera, kao i da odrede lice odgovorno za neposrednu primenu tih mera.
Kontrolu primene ovih mera sporovodi sanitarna ispekcija, kao i, u slučaju epidemije zaraznih bolesti od većeg epidemiološkog značaja šiirih razmera, komunalna ispekcija i komunalna milicija.
- Kaznene odredbe
Za nepoštovanje obaveza propisanih Zakonom predviđena je novčana kazna u iznosu od 50.000 do 150.000 dinara za fizička lica ukoliko se, pored ostalog, ne prijave nadležnoj zdravstvenoj službi na graničnom prelazu, ili ukoliko se u mestu boravka ne jave nadležnom zavodu ili institutu za javno zdravlje, kao i u slučaju odbijanja ili nepridržavanja karantina u kućnim uslovima.
Takođe, predviđena je novčana kazna u iznosu od 5.000 dinara za fizičko lice ukoliko se ne pridržava mera lične zaštite od infekcije za vreme epidemije.
Zakon predviđa novčane kazne u iznosu od 300.000 dinara za pravna lica, u iznosu od 150.000 dinara za preduzetnike, kao i u iznosu od 50.000 dinara za odgovorno lice u pravnom licu u slučaju nepridržavanja protivepidemijskih mera predviđenih ovim Zakonom.
Lice odgovorno za primenu mera lične zaštite od infekcije, ukoliko ne obezbedi neposrednu primenu tih mera kazniće se novčanom kaznom u iznosu od 30.000 dinara. Ako imate bilo kakva pitanja u vezi sa ovom temom, budite slobodni da kontaktirate Anu Popović: ana.popovic@zslaw.rs, partnera u advokatskoj kancelariji Živković Samardžić ili Vašu redovnu kontakt osobu u advokatskoj kancelariji Živković Samardžić.