New Quarantine Lists Aim to Curb Disease Spread at Borders

Two new lists outlining infectious diseases subject to border quarantine and prevention measures took effect on Wednesday. These lists aim to promptly curb the spread of diseases while maintaining clearance efficiency, according to authorities.

One list requiring border quarantine outlines 11 highly contagious and potentially lethal illnesses, including plague, cholera, yellow fever, and Ebola. Local customs officials are authorized to take on-site preventive measures for confirmed or suspected patients and notify local disease control and prevention authorities to transfer patients to designated hospitals for isolation, treatment, or medical observation.

A second list identifies 26 diseases that require close monitoring, including COVID-19, HIV/AIDS, measles, and mpox. Local customs will advise incoming travelers suspected of having contracted these diseases to visit hospitals for screenings, where local facilities will prioritize their cases.

The release of the two disease catalogs follows a new amendment to the Frontier Health and Quarantine Law, which was passed in late June. The amendment requires the formulation of lists to identify infections among cross-border travelers, deliver necessary medical services, and implement control and prevention measures.

"Early surveillance of key contagious diseases at ports of entry will be instrumental in detecting and preventing the cross-border transmission of epidemics," the National Administration of Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement on Monday.

The administration emphasized that the range of listed diseases is designed to balance effective disease prevention with ensuring the convenience of customs clearance. "Beyond thermal scanning, medical patrols, and other noninvasive actions, additional measures such as epidemiological investigations will only be applied to the very few travelers who exhibit abnormal symptoms, rather than all travelers," the administration explained.

It added that customs officials have upgraded quarantine procedures and deployed smart quarantine tools to improve efficiency.

The administration also said that customs, disease control, and health authorities will enhance communication and cooperation mechanisms, strengthen the sharing of infection-related information at ports of entry, and intensify training for public health and medical professionals.

Efforts will be coordinated to integrate quarantine measures at ports of entry with medical screening and inspections, ensuring timely treatment for patients while preventing the spread of pathogens. The administration reminded cross-border travelers to report any suspicious symptoms or diagnoses to customs and to cooperate with quarantine measures.