Over at Time, Art Caplan argues that “Nervous government officials who seem more interested in appearing tough rather than letting science actually defeat Ebola in the United States are misusing quarantine.” Read more here.
By Michelle Meyer [Author’s Note: Addendum and updates (latest: 4 pm, 10/31) added below.] A physician shall… be honest in all professional interactions, and strive to report physicians… engaging in fraud or deception, to appropriate entities. —AMA Principles of Medical Ethics This is a troubling series of news reports about deception and defiance on the part of…
By Wendy Parmet The heartfelt letter issued by Kaci Hickox, the nurse being held in quarantine in a New Jersey hospital, calls into question the surprising decision by Governors Christie and Cuomo to quarantine health care workers returning from West Africa. It also shines a spotlight on the all-important, but largely unexplored, question of how…
Over at his NBC News column, Art Caplan proposes a different approach to quarantining ebola “heroes.” How to combat fear? Honor these heroes by giving them paid R &R, with their partner if they so choose, for 21 days. Give them a vacation in the guise of quarantine. Give them a reason to want to…
By David Orentlicher [Cross-posted at Health Law Profs and PrawfsBlawg.] In the wake of Craig Spencer’s decision to go bowling in Brooklyn, governors of three major states—Illinois, New Jersey, and New York—have imposed new Ebola quarantine rules that are inconsistent with national public health policy, are not likely to protect Americans from Ebola, and may compromise the response to Ebola…
Art Caplan and his colleague Alison Bateman-House have a new post in Time about government authority to quarantine individuals who pose a risk of infecting others, and the practical logistics of carrying out a quarantine. Take a look here: Ebola in America: Government Can Lock Us Up for Weeks at a Time
By Wendy Parmet [Ed. Note: Cross-posted from HealthLawProf Blog.] Last month’s riots in an Ebola-infected slum in Monrovia, Liberia demonstrated anew the perils of relying on quarantine, and similar highly coercive public health laws, to contain highly contagious diseases. At first blush, Ebola viral disease (EVD) is exactly the type of disease for which broad…
