FORT KENT, Maine (AP) — A nurse who was confined against her will at a New Jersey hospital after returning from West Africa where she treated Ebola patients said Wednesday that she’s prepared to go to court if the state of Maine tries to quarantine her.
Kaci Hickox spoke to NBC’s “Today” show and ABC’s “Good Morning America” from Fort Kent, where her boyfriend is a senior nursing student.
She said she has so far abided by the state’s voluntary quarantine. She had no contact with anyone Tuesday and will have no human contact again Wednesday, she said.
But Hickox says if the restrictions aren’t lifted by Thursday, she will go to court to fight for her freedom.
“I don’t plan on sticking to the guidelines,” Hickox said on “Today”. “I remain appalled by these home quarantine policies that have been forced upon me even though I am in perfectly good health.”
Hickox, who volunteered in Africa with Doctors Without Borders, was the first person forced into New Jersey’s mandatory quarantine for people arriving at Newark Liberty International Airport from three West African countries.
Hickox, who spent the weekend in a quarantine tent, said she never had Ebola symptoms and tested negative in a preliminary evaluation, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo were sharply criticized for ordering mandatory quarantines.
“I am not going to sit around and be bullied by politicians and forced to stay in my home when I am not a risk to the American public,” she said.
On Tuesday, Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner Mary Mayhew said her department and the attorney general’s office were prepared to take legal steps to legally enforce the state’s voluntary quarantine if someone declines to cooperate.
“We do not want to have to legally enforce in-home quarantine,” she said. “We’re confident that selfless health workers who were brave enough to care for Ebola patients in a foreign country will be willing to take reasonable steps to protect residents of their own country.”
Hickox said Wednesday that she remains concerned by the mandatory quarantines.
“I truly believe that this policy is not scientifically or constitutionally just,” she said.
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Christie & Cuomo picked the wrong nurse to try to bully. Kudos to Ms Hickox for kicking BOTH their asses.
Agree this fear and nonsense must stop… And it is fear when someone that visited East Africa more than 1500 miles away from nearest cases is also quarantined. It is about time the politicians are shut down.
I can just see the “hospital”, that is a small H as they allowed a politician to dictate care, sending this nurse a $1000 per day bill for her stay in the tent. You can also place a bet that when she does not pay they will be hitting her credit with a default claim.
Yeah, I think some state officials need to review the definition of the word “voluntary.” Hint if it requires “legal enforcement” to get someone to do it against their will? It ain’t voluntary.
If you are going to have a mandatory quarantine, against the advice of the public health specialist that have commented on the matter, at least have the courage of your convictions to be honest about that being what you are doing.
Easy solution, make it mandatory for her to be monitored. Send a person once a day (or every 2 or 3 days) to where she lives or works at a set time convenient for her. Take her temp, etc. If she shows any symptoms (temp goes up, nausea, etc.), then you act. If not, no worries. Seems easy enough, and much cheaper than paying her to stay home. It’s pretty clear that only people with full blown Ebola are contagious, so if you act when symptoms start, there should be no problem at all.
While the quarantine is absurd, the state is not only picking up the cost of the hospital, but also paying her lost wages. So that is not a valid criticism. What is a valid critique is that she does not need to be quarantined.