Health Act 1956

Management of infectious diseases - Orders - Public health orders

92ZA: Public health order may impose certain requirements on individual

You could also call this:

"The court can make you follow rules to keep others safe if you have a disease that can spread."

If you pose a public health risk, the District Court can make a public health order that requires you to do certain things. The court can tell you to stay in a hospital or another suitable place, or to stay at home. You might have to stop doing certain activities, like going to work or using public transport.

The court can also tell you to be supervised by a specific person, and to give them information about what you are doing. You might have to let someone check on you to make sure you are not making the public health risk worse.

You could be required to get treatment for an infectious disease from a specific health provider. The court can also tell you to take part in counselling, education, or other activities to help manage the disease. In some cases, you might have to stay away from certain places or people.

Before the court can tell you to get treatment, they have to be sure that it is the only way to manage the public health risk. If the court tells you to stay in a hospital, the people in charge of the hospital have to let you stay there. The court can add conditions or restrictions to any requirements they impose on you.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM7086342.


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Part 3AManagement of infectious diseases
Orders: Public health orders

92ZAPublic health order may impose certain requirements on individual

  1. The District Court may, in making a public health order, impose on an individual any 1 or more of the following requirements the court thinks are necessary to prevent or minimise the public health risk posed by the individual:

  2. to be detained, at all times or at specified times, in a hospital or other suitable place or in specified parts of the hospital or place:
    1. to stay, at all times or at specified times, at a specified place of residence:
      1. to refrain from carrying out specified activities (for example, undertaking employment, using public transport, or travelling within and outside New Zealand) either absolutely or unless stated conditions are observed:
        1. to be supervised by a named person or by a person for the time being holding a named office, including, without limitation,—
          1. attending meetings arranged by that person; and
            1. providing that person with information on any action, occurrence, or plan that is relevant to the public health risk posed by the individual:
            2. after the views of the individual have been taken into account, to be subject to public health surveillance, with or without the aid of electronic communication devices, by a named person or by a person for the time being holding a named office or by a named organisation:
              1. to be treated for the infectious disease by a specified health provider:
                1. to participate in any of the following that are conducted by a health provider:
                  1. counselling:
                    1. education:
                      1. other activities related to the infectious disease:
                      2. to refrain from going to specified places either absolutely or unless stated conditions are observed:
                        1. to refrain from associating with specified persons or specified classes of persons:
                          1. to take specified actions to prevent or minimise the public health risk posed by the individual.
                            1. Before the court imposes a requirement of the kind described in subsection (1)(f), the court must be satisfied that, short of detaining the individual indefinitely, treating him or her is the only effective means of managing the public health risk posed by the individual.

                            2. If an order requires an individual to be detained in a hospital or other place operated by Health New Zealand, Health New Zealand board must permit the individual to be detained in the hospital or place.

                            3. The court may impose any requirement specified in subsection (1) subject to any conditions or restrictions that the court considers appropriate.

                            Notes
                            • Section 92ZA: inserted, on , by section 11 of the Health (Protection) Amendment Act 2016 (2016 No 35).
                            • Section 92ZA(3): amended, on , by section 104 of the Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) Act 2022 (2022 No 30).