The Minister hereby exempts the following categories of agreements or practices in the healthcare sector from the application of sections 4 and 5 of the Act if undertaken at the request of, and in coordination with, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition or the Department of Health for the sole purpose of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and the declared national disaster, subject to any conditions which may be stipulated by either department, and which exclude communication and agreements in respect of prices unless specifically authorised by the Minister or Minister of Health:
[Regulation 3 substituted by Notice No. R. 456, GG43215, dated 8 April 2020]
Hospitals and healthcare facilities
| 3.1. | Agreements or practices between hospitals or healthcare facilities with the sole purpose of: |
| 3.1.1. | co-ordinating on ensuring the patients are allocated (to the extent required) between the hospitals in the most efficient means possible to ensure that the respective capacities of the hospitals are effectively utilised. |
| 3.1.2. | communicating with each other in relation to capacities and utilisation of facilities including intensive care units and isolation beds. |
| 3.1.3. | co-ordinating in relation to the procurement of various consumables, pharmaceuticals and other inputs required for the optimal treatment of patients in order to ensure that inputs are procured in the most efficient manner possible. |
| 3.1.4. | co-ordinating on the allocation of specific types of services, medical professionals and nurses as between the various hospitals. |
| 3.1.5. | transferring nurses and medical practitioners from one hospital to another as the case may be. |
| 3.1.6. | standardising quality of care protocols. |
| 3.1.7. | transferring of medical supplies and equipment. |
Medical Suppliers
| 3.2. | Agreements or practices between medical suppliers with the sole purpose of: |
| 3.2.1. | communicating with each other in relation to availability of medical supplies. |
| 3.2.2. | co-ordinating the procurement and distribution of medical supplies. |
Medical specialists and radiologists
| 3.3. | Agreements or practices between medical specialist or radiologists with the sole purpose of: |
| 3.3.1. | communicating with each other and share data in relation to the scale of the outbreak, the disease profile and patient profile. |
| 3.3.2. | communicating with each other in relation to capacity and utilisation thereof. |
| 3.3.3. | standardising quality of care protocols. |
| 3.3.4. | transferring of medical supplies and equipment. |
Pathologists and laboratories
| 3.4. | Agreements or practices between pathologists or laboratories with the sole purpose of: |
| 3.4.1. | communicating with each other in relation to capacities and utilisation thereof. |
| 3.4.2. | co-ordinating the procurement of inputs required for testing. |
| 3.4.3. | transferring of medical supplies and equipment. |
Pharmacies
| 3.5. | Agreements or practices between pharmacies with the sole purpose of: |
| 3.5.1. | communicating with each other in respect of availability of pharmaceuticals and medical consumables. |
| 3.5.2. | co-ordinating the procurement of pharmaceuticals and medical consumables. |
| 3.5.3. | transferring of pharmaceuticals and medical consumables. |
Healthcare funders
| 3.6. | Agreements or practices between healthcare funders with the sole purpose of reducing the cost of diagnosis, tests and diagnostics, treatment and other preventative measures. |
| 3.7. | Agreements or practices between healthcare funders and healthcare facilities as well as other healthcare providers with the sole purpose of reducing the cost of diagnosis, tests and diagnostics, treatment and other preventative measures. |
| 3.8 | Agreements or practices between manufacturers and suppliers of medical and hygiene supplies, used in the testing, prevention or treatment of COVID-19 and its associated diseases, with the sole purpose of: |
| 3.8.1 | communicating with each other in relation to the availability of medical and hygiene supplies. |
| 3.8.2 | co-ordinating the procurement and distribution of medical and hygiene supplies. |
[Subregulation 3.8 inserted by Notice No. R. 456, GG43215, dated 8 April 2020]
