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Report A Disease

The Philadelphia Department of Public Health depends on reports of diseases/conditions of public health concern to protect the health of all Philadelphians and visitors.

Click here for a printable PDF table of all the Notifiable Diseases and Conditions in Philadelphia.

For each disease or condition, please provide the following information:

  • Suspected or confirmed disease or condition
  • Patient name, date or birth, sex, address and phone
  • Clinical signs and symptoms
  • Laboratory tests
  • Clinician name and contact information

Immediately notifiable diseases contact:

Business Hours
Call (215) 685-6748
Fax a report to (215) 238-6947
After Hours
Call (215) 686-4514 for the Division of Disease Control on-call personnel at City Hall

Routinely notifiable diseases contact:

Disease

Reporting Instructions

AIDS/HIV
  • Call 215-685-4781 during regular business hours.

Tuberculosis

STDs (including record requests)

Lead Poisoning
  • Call 215-685-6741 during regular business hours.

Animal Bites/Exposures

All other routinely notifiable diseases
  • Complete the Notifiable Disease Case report form and fax the completed report to 215-238-6947 within 5 days.
  • Call 215-685-6748 during regular business hours within 5 days.
  • Submit the report through PA-NEDSS (Pennsylvania National Electronic Disease Surveillance System) within 5 days.
  • Reports submitted by email cannot be accepted.

What to Report

Immediately Notifiable Disease and Conditions

Immediately notifiable diseases, infections or conditions must be reported within 24 hours after being identified by symptoms, appearance or diagnosis. All unusual disease clusters, disease outbreaks, and unusual disease occurrences should also be reported immediately. Report suspected or confirmed cases to PDPH by calling 215-685-6748 during business hours or 215-686-4514 after business hours.

Acute Flaccid Myelitis

Influenza - novel influenza A

Anthrax

Influenza - pediatric deaths and institutional outbreaks

Arboviruses

Measles (rubeola)

Botulism

Melioidosis

Brucellosis

Meningococcal infections

Candida auris

Mpox

Cholera

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome (MIS)

Diptheria

Novel coronaviruses (SARS, MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19)

Encephalitis

Pandrug-resistant organisms

E. coli O157:H7 and Shiga toxin-producing bacteria

Plague

Food poisoning

Poliomyelitis

H. influenzae, invasive disease

Rabies

Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome

Rubella (German Measles) and Congenital Rubella

Hemorrhagic fevers, all

Smallpox

Acute HIV infection

Tularemia

Birth of infant to HIV infected woman

Typhoid (S. typhi and paratyphi)

New HIV positive result in a pregnant woman

West Nile Virus

Pregnancy in HIV infected woman

Yellow Fever

Routinely Notifiable Disease and Conditions

Routinely Notifiable Disease and Conditions must be reported within five days after being identified by symptoms, appearance, or diagnosis. Report suspected or confirmed cases to the Philadelphia Department of Public Health by calling 215-685-6748 during business hours or faxing a report.

Amebiasis

Leptospirosis

Animal bites (wild/stray/domestic)

Listeriosis

Babesiosis

Lyme disease

Campylobacteriosis

Malaria

Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE)

Meningitis (viral, fungal, bacterial)

Chancroid

Mumps

Chikungunya

Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS)

Chlamydia trachomatis, including LGV

Pertussis (whooping cough)

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

Psittacosis (ornithosis)

Cryptosporidiosis

Rickettsial diseases

Cyclosporiasis

Salmonellosis

Dengue

Shigellosis

Ehrlichiosis/Anaplasmosis

S. aureus, vancomycin insensitive

Giardiasis

Streptococcal disease, invasive group A

Gonococcal infections

Streptococcal disease, invasive group B (neonatal)

Guillain-Barre syndrome

S. pneumoniae, invasive disease

Hepatitis A

Syphilis

Hepatitis B, including pregnancy in a Hepatitis B infected woman

Tetanus

Hepatitis C, including pregnancy in a Hepatitis C infected woman

Toxic Shock Syndrome

Hepatitis, other viral

Trichinosis

Histoplasmosis

Tuberculosis

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV/AIDS)

Varicella, including zoster

Lead poisoning

Vibriosis

Legionellosis

Yersiniosis

Leprosy (Hansen's disease)

Zika, including prenatal and postnatal birth defects

Why Report a Disease?

The Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) depends on healthcare providers, laboratories, day care centers, state institutions, and other facilities to report diseases and conditions to protect the health of Philadelphians and our visitors. Reporting of suspected or confirmed communicable diseases is mandated under Pennsylvania state law and Philadelphia City code. Physicians and laboratories have the primary responsibility for reporting. School nurses, day care centers, nursing homes, hospitals, state institutions, or other facilities providing health services are also required to report the listed diseases and conditions.

What happens once a case is reported?

Once a case is reported, the PDPH Division of Disease Control performs the following tasks as needed:

  • Interviews cases and clinicians to:
    • Identify risk factors and other potential contacts.
    • Evaluate(s) if patients/contacts work in sensitive occupations or settings that may pose a public health concern (e.g. food handlers, daycare attendees).
    • Assess the need for preventive treatments such as antibiotics and vaccines.
  • Analyzes disease report data to determine important trends and recognize any emerging potential incidents of disease.
  • Develops disease guidance and infection control recommendation based on local disease trends and resources.
  • Coordinates specialized lab testing performed at the city, state or federal public health labs to confirm diagnosis.
  • Sends health alerts to clinicians and public health official's regarding Philadelphia specific data and guidance for infectious disease situations of public health concern.

Frequently Asked Questions about HIPAA

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a law to protect the confidentiality and security of healthcare information. Below are some frequently asked questions regarding HIPAA and disease reporting:

Q1. Does HIPAA prohibit reporting to public health agencies?

No, disease reporting to public health authorities in not prohibitied by HIPAA.

Section 164.512(b)(1)(i) of HIPAA allows disclosure for public health activities to “a public health authority that is authorized by law to collect or receive such information for the purpose of preventing or controlling disease, injury, or disability…the conduct of public health surveillance, public health investigations, and public health interventions…”

Q2. Does HIPAA require authorization from patients prior to reporting?

No, HIPAA does not require the reporter to seek authorization or documentation from patients

Q3. How does HIPAA effect how disease and conditions are reported to public health authorities?

No, HIPAA does not require any changes to procedures when reporting notifiable diseases and conditions to public health authorities.

For more information, click here to visit the Health and Human Services webpage on HIPAA privacy rules.

All Reporting Forms

Reporting Form

Description

Fillable notifiable disease case report form

For routinely notifiable diseases and conditions, complete the form on your computer, print out, and fax to 215-238-6947.

For immediately notifiable diseases and conditions, the information on this form will also be collected; however, reports must be called in as soon as possible to 215-685-6748 during business hours or 215-686-4514 after hours.

Fillable influenza report form

To be used to report suspected and confirmed cases of influenza who
are either hospitalized or fatal.

Fillable COVID-19 report form

To be used to report severe or high-risk setting cases of COVID-19.

Fillable MIS-C report form

To be used to report suspected and confirmed cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome associated with COVID-19.

Fillable other respiratory virus report form

To be used to report suspected and confirmed cases of respiratory viruses other than influenza who are either hospitalized or fatal.

Animal exposure reporting form

To be used to report animal exposures, such as bites, scratches, or mucous membrane contact with animal saliva or brain material that could possibly transmit the rabies virus from any animal (wild, stray, or domestic).

Fillable Candida auris case report form

To be used to report all cases of Candida auris and Candida haemulonii.

Fillable Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae case report form

To be used to report all cases of Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE).

Fillable Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) case report form

To be used to report all cases of neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS)

Fillable Pandrug-resistant Organism (PDRO) case report form

To be used to report all organisms that exhibit non-susceptibility to all antibacterial or all anti-fungal agents tested.

Fillable STD case report form

To be used to report suspected and confirmed cases of STDs.

Adult Tuberculosis report form

To be used to report adult LTBI, suspected, and confirmed cases of tuberculosis.

Pediatric Tuberculosis report and consultation form

To be used to report pediatric LTBI, suspected, and confirmed cases of tuberculosis and to request consultation from the Tuberculosis Control Program for a pediatric patient.

Tuberculosis Control Program adult consultation request form

To be used to request consultation from the Tuberculosis Control Program for an adult.

How to Report

What to Report

Why Report

HIPAA FAQs

All Reporting Forms