Category Archives: Health

Quarantine Confusion Continues

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is releasing, Kaci Hickox, a nurse who recently returned from West Africa to her home state of Maine, where that state will decide how she should be monitored for Ebola.  Returning residents of New Jersey will still be subject to a 21-day quarantine.

Meanwhile, the Joint Chiefs of Staff want all troops returning from West Africa to undergo a mandatory 21-day quarantine, putting them at odds with President Obama.

Walking It Back

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo softened a bit on the quarantine for health care workers returning from West Africa.  He now says they can do their 21-day quarantine at home and that they will be compensated for lost wages.

Soon after Cuomo, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said that New Jersey residents can also be quarantined at home (he didn’t address lost income), and that efforts would be made to get non-Jersey residents back to their own states for their quarantine.  But once a person leaves New Jersey, I don’t know what jurisdiction Christie would have to impose a quarantine on them if their home state doesn’t have such a requirement.

There’s still a gap between Cuomo/Christie and the Obama Administration, but it’s been narrowed somewhat.

The New Ebola Battle

The new Ebola battle isn’t between health care workers and the disease itself, but between the federal government and the states.

The Obama Administration is pushing New Jersey governor Chris Christie and New York governor Andrew Cuomo to rescind their mandatory 21-day quarantine for anyone arriving from West Africa who has had contact with Ebola patients.  Their quarantine announcement took the feds (and New York City) by surprise.

Meanwhile, Illinois and Florida have joined the quarantine.

Good luck getting Christie or Cuomo to budge.  Christie is running for president and can’t be seen as caving to Obama.  Cuomo is up for re-election in a week and can’t be seen as weak and indecisive, as pushed by Christie and then pulled by Obama.  He may also run for president, so he has to seem tough.