New certificates will increase AIDS, STD testing, those working without certificate to be fined 5000 yuan

The capital’s public health offices have recently started implementing health inspections of service workers at entertainment establishments and bath houses. The results indicate that their state of health is not good. The Inspection Office of the Urumqi Health Department has already decided to implement the new health certificates.

The difference between the new health certificates and earlier health certificates is the addition of AIDS and STD tests, a picture, name, age, and date of issuance. There is also new anti-fraud technology that will eliminate fears of fake certificates.

An official from Inspection Office of the Urumqi Health Department gave this reporter an interview yesterday, and said that in order to prevent the sexual transmission of HIV and other STDs, from the end of July the Urumqi Department of Health Inspection Office and Urumqi Center for Disease Control have been giving workers at Entertainment centers, bath houses, and other locations health inspections, and giving out newly issued “Urumqi City Entertainment Venue Worker Health Certificates” (which differ from food service health certificates). At present, nearly 1000 workers from 35 entertainment venues and saunas have received health exams, revealing more than a few cases of HIV, Syphilis, Hepatitis-B, and other communicable disease infections.

Yang Liming, the director of Section 4 of the Urumqi Department of Health Inspection Office, said “You can see from this that hidden disease carriers in the capital’s entertainment venues are a grave threat to public health. Therefore, it is necessary to raise people’s attention.”

Director Yang also said that from today, the Inspection Office of the Urumqi Health Department will increase its inspection efforts at entertainment venues and saunas in order to reduce to a minimum the danger. She said that service workers at public places would not be allowed to work without getting the health certificates, and that anyone discovered working without a certificate can under the law be fined a minimum of 5,000 yuan.

The Urumqi Department of Health Inspection Office and Urumqi Center for Disease Control also warned consumers not to forget to ask workers to present their health certificates when going to entertainment venues or saunas.

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