Workers from nine countries,including India,seeking jobs in the UAE,may soon have to undergo screening for infectious diseases before they fly to the Emirates,if a scheme unveiled by the Health Ministry works according to plans. Migrants from India,Pakistan Bangladesh,Nepal,the Philippines,Ethiopia,Egypt,Syria and Sudan could face disease checks after three months,if a pilot phase targeting job seekers from Indonesia and Sri Lanka run smoothly,a news report has said. "(How we roll the rest of the scheme out) will depend on our evaluation," Ibrahim Al Qadi,director of the Ministry's preventative medicine department,told Arabian Business. The initial phase of the scheme will come into effect from October 1. "We are going to evaluate our situation from these two countries. After three or six months we will sit down again,and plan how we go further," Al Qadi said. The scheme is designed to bar migrants at risk of spreading infection from entering the UAE and to curb the entry of contagious diseases in the Gulf countries. Immigrants are required to undergo a second compulsory screening on their arrival in the UAE,before securing a visa. Those that test positive for contagious diseases such as HIV,tuberculosis or hepatitis B will be deported. Al Qadi said the scheme would eventually apply across all categories of workers,irrespective of the incidence rates linked to their home country. "Incidence rates don't matter," he said. "Our main plan is to completely stop the entry of any infectious diseases,because once they enter,it will create a problem for us inside the country," he said. Doctors practising in the UAE are required to inform the ministry if they treat an expatriate who is diagnosed with an infectious disease. Under existing laws,expatriates are required to undergo medical checks before securing a residency visa in the UAE. However,the ministry said in May the potentially month-long period before screening could allow for the spread of some diseases before diagnosis. Saudi Arabia,Kuwait and Qatar have required migrants from certain regions to undergo health checks in their home countries for some time.
