Decree No. 8/2020 of November 8
Summary: Regulates the application of the state of emergency decreed by the President of the Republic.

In view of the evolution of the epidemiological situation, the President of the Republic proceeded to declare the state of emergency, with a very limited scope, in a proportional and appropriate manner, with largely preventive effects. In the terms in which it was decreed, the state of emergency brought enhanced guarantees of legal security for the measures adopted or to be adopted by the competent authorities for the prevention and response to the pandemic of the disease COVID-19, in areas such as freedom of movement, the control of people’s health status, the use of private and social or cooperative health care facilities and the call for human resources to strengthen the screening capacity.

This decree implements the state of emergency, focusing on the four areas mentioned.

Thus, in terms of freedom of movement, it is foreseen to prohibit movement – in determined municipalities with high risk – in spaces and public roads daily between 2300 hrs and 0500 hrs 5 am, as well as on Saturdays and Sundays between 13.00 hrs and 05:00 hrs, except for the purpose of urgent and urgent travel in the terms provided for in this decree.

The possibility of performing body temperature measurements, by non-invasive means, to control access to the workplace, to public services or institutions, educational establishments and commercial, cultural or sports spaces, means of transport, in residential structures is established , health facilities, prisons or educational centers.

It is also admitted that workers, users and visitors of health establishments, educational establishments and residential structures may be subject to diagnostic tests of SARS-CoV-2, as well as prisoners in prison or youth establishments, admitted to educational centers and their workers. Likewise, those wishing to enter or leave the national mainland or the autonomous regions by air or sea, as well as those wishing to access places determined for this purpose by the Directorate-General for Health, may be subject to testing.

Provision is also made for the use, preferably by agreement, of resources, means or establishments for the provision of health care from the private and social or cooperative sectors, to assist in combating the pandemic or strengthening assistance activity, through fair compensation.

Finally, mechanisms are envisaged to strengthen the screening capacity of public health authorities, enabling the mobilization of human resources, who do not have to be health professionals, to support the control of the pandemic, namely through epidemiological surveys, contact tracking and follow-up of people under active surveillance. Military personnel in the Armed Forces can also be mobilized to carry out these tasks.

Like this:
Under the terms of paragraph g) of article 199 of the Constitution, the Government decrees:

Article 1
Object

This decree implements the declaration of a state of emergency made by Decree of the President of the Republic no. 51-U / 2020 , of 6 November.

Article 2
Territorial application

This decree is applicable throughout the national territory, with the exception of the following article, which is applicable only to the municipalities of the continental national territory referred to in annex II to the Resolution of the Council of Ministers no. 92-A / 2020 , of 2 November . (Note: The high risk municipalities)

Article 3” Prohibition of movement on public roads

1 – On a daily basis, in the period between 23:00hrs and 05:00hrs, as well as on Saturdays and Sundays in the period between 13:00hrs and 05:00hrs (of the next day), citizens may only move in public spaces and streets, or in private spaces and streets equivalent to public roads, in the following situations:

a) Travel for the performance of professional duties or equivalent, as confirmed by a declaration (as proof): i) Issued by the employer or similar entity; ii) “Self-Issued” by the employee , in the case of self-employed workers, sole proprietors or members of statutory bodies; iii) word of honour, in the case of workers in the agricultural, livestock and fisheries sectors;

b) Travel in the exercise of certain functions or as a result of these without the need for a declaration issued by the employer or equivalent:

i) Health professionals and other workers in health and social support institutions; ii) Civil protection agents, security forces and services, military, militarised and civilian personnel of the Armed Forces and inspectors of the Food and Economic Security Authority;

ii) Civil protection agents, security forces and services, the military, militarised and civilian personnel of the Armed Forces and inspectors of the Food and Economic Security Authority;

iii) Officials of the sovereign bodies, leaders of the social partners and of the political parties represented in the Assembleia da República ( Parliament) and persons bearing a official Pass issued under the terms of the law;

iv) Ministers of worship, upon accreditation by the competent bodies of the respective church or religious community, under the terms of No. 2 Article 15, of Law no. 16/2001, of 22 June, in its present wording;

v) Staff of diplomatic missions, consular offices and international organisations located in Portugal, provided they are related to the performance of official duties;

c) Travel for health reasons, namely to purchase products in pharmacies or to obtain health care and for transport of people to whom such care should be administered;

d) Travel to grocery shops and supermarkets and other establishments selling food and hygiene products, for people and animals;

(e) Travel to provide emergency shelter for victims of domestic violence or human trafficking, as well as for children and young people at risk, by application of the measures decreed by a judicial authority or the Commission for the Protection of Children and Young People, in the case of a residential or family home;

(f) Travel to give assistance to vulnerable persons, the disabled, children, parents, the elderly or dependents; No. 217-A, of 8 November 2020 Page 4 Diário da República, Series 1.

g) Travel for other compelling family reasons, such as the fulfilment of shared parental responsibilities, as determined by agreement between the holders of the same or as laid down by the respective court;

h) Travel by veterinarians and keepers for urgent medical-veterinary care, caretakers of animal colonies recognised by the municipalities, volunteers from animal protection associations with dependent animals who need to go to animal shelters, and animal rescue teams who need to travel to provide urgent assistance;

i) Essential travel for the exercise of freedom of the press;

j) Short walks, for the purpose of enjoying moments outdoors, unaccompanied or in the company of members of the same household who live together;

k) Short walks for the purposes of walking and exercising pets;

l) For other reasons of “force majeure or for reasons which cannot be postponed, provided that they can be shown to be unavoidable and can be justified;

(m) return to their personal homes in connection with the journeys referred to in the preceding paragraphs and the journeys and activities referred to in Article 28 of the Conselho de Ministros (Council of Ministers) Resolution No. 92-A/2020 of 2 November.

2, Except for the purposes laid down in sub paragraphs j) and k) of the preceding paragraph, private vehicles may be used on public roads, including refuelling at petrol stations, in the situations referred to in the preceding paragraph.

3 – In establishments where food and hygiene products are sold, both for people and animals, other products may also be purchased, if available.

4 – The journeys allowed under the terms of the previous numbers shall preferably be unaccompanied and shall respect the recommendations and orders determined by the health authorities and by the security forces and services, namely those in in respect of the distances to be observed between people

Article 4
Body temperature control
1 – Measurements of body temperature can be performed by non-invasive means, in the control of access to the workplace, to public services or institutions, educational establishments and commercial, cultural or sports spaces, means of transport, in residential structures, health establishments, prisons or educational centers.

2 – Citizens referred to in the following article may also be subject to body temperature measurements.

3 – The provisions of the preceding paragraphs do not prejudice the right to individual data protection, the registration of body temperature associated with the person’s identity being expressly prohibited, except with the person’s express authorization.

4 – Measurements can be carried out by a worker at the service of the entity responsible for the place or establishment, and no physical contact with the target person is permitted, always using appropriate equipment for this purpose, which cannot contain any memory or record measurements made.

5 – That person’s access to the places mentioned in paragraph 1 may be prevented whenever he:

a) Refuse body temperature measurement;

b) Present a result higher than the normal body temperature, considering as such a body temperature equal to or higher than 38ºC, as defined by the DGS.

6 – In cases where the provision in paragraph b) of the previous number determines the impossibility of a worker to access the respective workplace, the absence is justified.

Article 5
Conducting diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2

1 – The following may be subject to diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2:

a) Workers, users and visitors of health care establishments;

b) Workers, students and visitors to education and teaching establishments and higher education institutions;

c) Workers, users and visitors of residential structures for the elderly, integrated continuous care units of the National Network of Integrated Continuous Care and other responses dedicated to the elderly, as well as children, young people and people with disabilities;

d) In the context of prison services and educational centers:

i) Prisoners in prisons and young people admitted to educational centers;

ii) Persons wishing to visit those referred to in the preceding paragraph;

iii) Prison Guard Corps workers and other workers of the Directorate-General for Reintegration and Prison Services (DGRSP), in the exercise of their functions and because of them, for the purposes of access and permanence in the workplace;

iv) Prison Guard Corps workers, whenever, in the exercise of their functions and because of them, they access or remain in other places with regard to the transportation and custody of prisoners, namely health units and courts;

v) The other users of the DGRSP services, whenever they wish to enter and remain in the respective facilities;

e) Anyone wishing to enter or leave the mainland national territory or the Autonomous Regions by air or sea;

f) Anyone wishing to access places determined for this purpose by the Directorate-General for Health (DGS).

2 – The conduct of diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2 referred to in the previous number is determined by the person in charge of the respective establishment or service, except in the case of subparagraph d), where it is done by order of the Director-General for Reinsertion and Services Prisoners, under the terms of the DGS.

3 – In cases where the results of the tests carried out under the preceding paragraphs make it impossible for a worker to have access to the respective workplace, the absence is justified.

Article 6
Exceptional measures in the field of public health

1 – The member of the Government responsible for health, with the power to delegate, determines:

a) The exceptional measures applicable to the assistance activity carried out by services and establishments integrated in the National Health Service (SNS);

b) Exceptional measures for the use of services and establishments integrated in the NHS with health care services from the private and social sectors, in terms of health care provision;

c) The mobilization of workers from services and establishments integrated in the SNS who require termination due to denunciation of the respective employment contracts or employment contracts in public functions;

d) The necessary measures and the practice of acts that, within the specific scope of its action, are adequate and indispensable to guarantee the conditions of normality in the production, transport, distribution and supply of goods and services essential to the activity of the health sector.

2 – Without prejudice to the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the Government member responsible for the health area, in conjunction with the Government member responsible for the economy, with the power of delegation, determines the necessary exception measures, in the context of the emergency caused by the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic, as well as for the treatment of COVID-19 disease, regarding:

a) Circuits of medicine and medical devices, as well as other health products, biocides, disinfectant solutions, alcohol and personal protective equipment, namely in the scope of manufacture, distribution, marketing, import, acquisition, dispensation and prescription, tending to ensure and enable the supply, availability and access of the necessary products to health units, patients and other users;

b) Access to medicines, namely experimental ones, used in the context of the pandemic and the continuity of clinical trials.

3 – The determinations referred to in the preceding paragraphs are preferably established by agreement or, failing this, unilaterally through fair compensation, under the terms of Decree-Law No. 637/74 , of 20 November, in its current wording.

Article 7
Enhanced screening capacity>

1 – With a view to strengthening the screening capacity of public health authorities and services, the mobilization of human resources can be determined, namely to carry out epidemiological surveys, to track contacts of patients with COVID-19 and to monitor people under surveillance active.

2 – For the purposes of the preceding paragraph, the carrying out of epidemiological inquiries, the tracking of contacts of patients with COVID-19 and the monitoring of persons under active surveillance may be carried out by those who are not health professionals.

3 – The human resources referred to in paragraph 1 may be workers of public entities of the direct and indirect administration of the State and of local, private, social or cooperative authorities, regardless of the professional link or functional content, which are in prophylactic isolation, are in the situation provided for in article 25-A of Decree-Law no. 10-A / 2020 , of 13 March, in its current wording, and are not on teleworking, that is civil protection agents or teachers with no teaching component.

4 – For the purposes of the preceding paragraphs, the allocation of workers to the functions referred to in the preceding paragraphs must take into account their respective training and functional content, with the mobilization and coordination of persons operationalized by dispatch of the members of the Government responsible for the areas of public administration, work, social solidarity, health and the sectorial area to which the worker is assigned, when applicable.

5 – During the period in which the mobilization of workers is maintained and as long as working conditions are guaranteed that especially ensure the protection of their health, the exercise of functions at a different time and place may be imposed.

6 – The provisions of the preceding paragraph, as far as the workplace is concerned, do not apply to workers who are in prophylactic isolation.

7 – Workers who are mobilized under the provisions of this article maintain all the rights inherent to the place of origin and cannot be harmed in the development of their career.

Article 8
National Defence and Armed Forces

1 – The member of the Government responsible for the area of ​​national defense ensures articulation with the other governmental areas to guarantee, when necessary, the commitment of people, means, goods and services of the National Defense necessary to comply with the provisions of this decree.

2 – The Armed Forces participate in conducting epidemiological inquiries and tracking contacts of patients with COVID-19, this participation being coordinated by the respective command.

Article 9
Internal Administration

The Government member responsible for the internal administration area, with the power to delegate:

a) Determines the closure of road and rail traffic, for reasons of public health, safety or traffic fluidity or the restriction on the circulation of certain types of vehicles in the cases and during the periods referred to in article 3;

b) Coordinate a structure for monitoring the state of emergency, composed of representatives of governmental areas defined by order of the Prime Minister and representatives of the security forces and services and of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC), for the purposes of monitoring and production of regular information on the situation, namely for the purpose of complying with the provisions of paragraph 1 of article 28 of Law no. 44/86, of September 30, in its current wording, without prejudice to its own powers the Secretary General of the Homeland Security System and the Security Coordinating Office.

Article 10
Civil Protection

Within the scope of Civil Protection, and without prejudice to the provisions of Law No. 44/86 , of September 30, in its current wording:

a) Territorially competent political and institutional coordination structures are activated, which assess, depending on the evolution of the situation, the possible activation of the civil protection emergency plans at the respective territorial level;

b) The permanent assessment of the operational situation and the corresponding adequacy of the Special Alert State of the Integrated System of Protection and Relief Operations are carried out.

Article 11
Regulations and implementing acts

1 – The regulations and administrative acts for the execution of this decree are effective by means of mere notification to the recipient, by electronic or other means, with the remaining applicable formalities being waived, being considered notified on the same day.

2 – For the purposes of the provisions of the preceding paragraph, notification to recipients is understood through the publication of regulations or acts on the website of the competent entities for the approval of regulations or the practice of acts.

Article 12
Oversight

1 – The security forces and services are responsible for monitoring compliance with the provisions of this decree, by:

a) Sensitization of the community regarding the prohibition of unjustified travel;

b) The emanation of legitimate orders, under the terms of the present decree, the combination and participation for the crime of disobedience, under the terms and for the purposes of article 348 of the Penal Code, for violation of the provisions of this decree, as well as the driving to the respective home when necessary under the terms of article 3;

c) The follow-up and follow-up of people in prophylactic isolation or active surveillance.

2 – The parish councils collaborate in the fulfillment of the provisions of this decree, namely in advising the non-concentration of people on the public road, in recommending to all citizens the fulfillment of the ban on unjustified travel and in signaling with the security services, as well as the municipal police, of establishments to be closed.

3 – The security forces and services permanently report to the Government member responsible for the area of ​​internal administration the degree of compliance by the population with the provisions of this decree, with a view to the Government being able to assess the situation at all times.

Article 13
General duty of cooperation
During the period of validity of the state of emergency, citizens and other entities have a duty to collaborate, namely in the fulfillment of orders or instructions from the bodies and agents responsible for security, civil protection and public health in the prompt satisfaction of requests, which are justifiably addressed to them. made by the competent entities for the implementation of the measures of this decree.

Article 14
Safeguarding measures
The provisions of this decree are without prejudice to other measures that have already been adopted in the context of combating the disease COVID-19, namely the provisions of the Resolution of the Council of Ministers no. 92-A / 2020 , of 2 November, prevailing over the same when they provide otherwise.

Article 15
Execution at local level
The Prime Minister proceeds to appoint the authorities that coordinate the execution of the declaration of a state of emergency in the continental national territory, at the local level, under the terms of paragraph 4 of article 20 of Law no. 44/86 , of September 30, in its current wording.

Article 16
Implementation
This decree shall enter into force at 00:00 on November 9, 2020.

Seen and approved by the Council of Ministers on November 7, 2020. – António Luís Santos da Costa.

Signed on 8 November 2020.

Publish yourself.

The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.

Countersigned on November 8, 2020.

The Prime Minister, António Luís Santos da Costa.

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