Before clearing for any American port any vessel in a foreign port must
procure from the consul a “bill of health”, which is a certificate to
the effect that the sanitary conditions of the vessel are satisfactory
and that all rules and regulations in such cases have been complied
with. The consul must take pains to satisfy himself before granting the
“bill of health”, and for this purpose a medical officer is often
detailed by the Government. A master of a vessel who sails into an
American port without having procured a “bill of health” is liable to a
fine not to exceed $5,000.