Citation, commencement and interpretation1.
(1)
These regulations may be cited as the National Health Service (Venereal Diseases) Regulations 1974 and shall come into operation on 1st April 1974.
(2)
The rules for the construction of Acts of Parliament contained in the Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the purposes of the interpretation of these regulations as they apply for the purposes of the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
Confidentiality of information2.
Every Regional Health Authority and every Area Health Authority shall take all necessary steps to secure that any information capable of identifying an individual obtained by officers of the Authority with respect to persons examined or treated for any sexually transmitted disease shall not be disclosed except—
(a)
for the purpose of communicating that information to a medical practitioner or to a person employed under the direction of a medical practitioner in connection with the treatment of persons suffering from such disease or the prevention of the spread thereof, and
(b)
for the purpose of such treatment or prevention.