A nurse who treated Ebola patients in West Africa said she plans to end her voluntary quarantine and even stepped outside her home briefly on Wednesday.
Kaci Hickox’s words and actions signalled a potential showdown with state police monitoring her home and state officials seeking to legally enforce the quarantine. Police stood across the street and watched as Ms. Hickox held an impromptu press conference outside with her boyfriend.
State officials are seeking a court order allowing state troopers to detain Ms. Hickox, said Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner Mary Mayhew.
“I remain appalled by these home quarantine policies that have been forced upon me even though I am in perfectly good health,” Ms. Hickox said on “Today.”
A judge would have to grant the state’s request in what could serve as a test as to the legality of state quarantines during the Ebola scare.
Until an order is signed by a judge, state police will monitor Hickox’s movement and interactions if she leaves her home, Mr. Mayhew said.
Generally, states have broad authority when it comes to such matters. But Maine health officials could have a tough time convincing a judge that Ms. Hickox poses a threat, said attorney Jackie L. Caynon III, who specializes in health law in Worcester, Massachusetts.
“If somebody isn’t showing signs of the infection, then it’s kind of hard to say someone should be under mandatory quarantine,” he said.
Ebola, which is spread through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person, has killed thousands of people in Africa, but only four people have been diagnosed with it in the United States. People can’t be infected just by being near someone who’s sick, and people aren’t contagious unless they’re sick, health officials say.
Guidelines from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend monitoring for health care workers like Ms. Hickox who have come into contact with Ebola patients. But some states, including Maine, are going above and beyond guidelines.
“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.
Maine Gov. Paul LePage, who cancelled campaign events Wednesday to keep tabs on the situation, commended all health care workers who have volunteered in Africa to treat Ebola patients. But he said the state must be “vigilant” to protect others.
State law allows a judge to grant temporary custody of someone if health officials demonstrate “a clear and immediate public health threat.”
The state’s court filing was expected late Wednesday or early Thursday, officials said. If a judge grants the state’s request, then Ms. Hickox will appeal the decision on constitutional grounds, Mr. Siegel said.
