Notifiable diseases and how to report them
Notifiable diseases in humans that medical practitioners must report and how to report them.
Applies to England
Registered medical practitioners must report a notifiable disease to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA, previously Public Health England).
Notifiable diseases are certain infections that may present a risk to human health. Check the list of notifiable diseases.
How to report a suspected notifiable disease
If the case is an urgent notifiable disease, you must report it by telephone to your local UKHSA health protection team within 24 hours. This is to discuss actions to protect public health.
Report all cases on the Report a notifiable disease online service within 3 days.
Do not wait for laboratory confirmation of the disease. By law, you must report any suspicion of a notifiable disease.
Diseases you must report
You must report any suspected case of a notifiable disease.
| Notifiable disease | Whether likely to be routine or urgent |
|---|---|
| Acute encephalitis | Routine |
| Acute infectious hepatitis (A/B/C) | Urgent |
| Acute meningitis | Urgent |
| Acute poliomyelitis | Urgent |
| Anthrax | Urgent |
| Botulism | Urgent |
| Brucellosis | Routine. Urgent if acquired in UK |
| Cholera | Urgent |
| COVID-19 | Routine |
| Diphtheria | Urgent |
| Enteric fever (typhoid or paratyphoid fever) | Urgent |
| Food poisoning | Routine. Urgent if part of a cluster or outbreak |
| Haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS) | Urgent |
| Infectious bloody diarrhoea | Urgent |
| Invasive group A streptococcal disease | Urgent |
| Legionnaires’ disease | Urgent |
| Leprosy | Routine |
| Malaria | Routine. Urgent if acquired in UK |
| Measles | Urgent |
| Meningococcal septicaemia | Urgent |
| Mpox (previously known as monkeypox) | Urgent |
| Mumps | Routine |
| Plague | Urgent |
| Rabies | Urgent |
| Rubella | Routine |
| Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) | Urgent |
| Scarlet fever | Routine |
| Smallpox | Urgent |
| Tetanus | Routine. Urgent if associated with injecting drug use |
| Tuberculosis | Routine. Urgent if healthcare worker, or suspected cluster or multi-drug resistant |
| Typhus | Routine |
| Viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF) | Urgent |
| Whooping cough | Urgent if diagnosed in acute phase. Routine in later diagnosis |
| Yellow fever | Routine. Urgent if acquired in UK |
A case may be urgent if:
- it’s part of a current outbreak
- the suspected disease is uncommon in the UK
- the suspected disease spreads easily, or its spread is hard to control
- the patient is high risk, for example because of their age or job
If you are not sure if the case is urgent, telephone your local UKHSA health protection team.
You can download and print the list of notifiable diseases on a poster for your practice or setting.
Reporting other infectious diseases
You can use the Report a notifiable disease online service to report any other suspected infectious disease if you think it may present a significant risk to human health. Select the category ‘other significant disease’.
Reporting other public health hazards
To report other public health hazards to UKHSA, such as chemical or radiation exposure, contact your local UKHSA health protection team.
Reporting organisms that cause infectious diseases
Diagnostic laboratories must report notifiable organisms that are causative agents of infectious diseases to UKHSA.
Why you must report a notifiable disease
Reporting suspected cases of infectious disease to UKHSA protects public health.
Health protection teams use your information to manage outbreaks and prevent further infections. For example, they:
- provide public health advice to reduce the spread of infection
- carry out contact tracing
- send additional diagnostic test kits
- identify disease trends and risks
Your duty to report notifiable diseases is outlined in the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984 and the Health Protection (Notification) Regulations 2010.
Read more on your reporting responsibilities on page 14 of Health Protection Legislation (England) Guidance 2010.
You can provide confidential patient information without consent under Regulation 3 of The Health Service (Control of Patient Information) Regulations 2002.
Notifiable disease data for England
You can read UKHSA data on notifications of infectious diseases in England and Wales.
Subscribe to UKHSA email reports on notifications of infectious diseases in England Wales.
Get help with reporting a notifiable disease
If you need help, contact your local UKHSA health protection team.