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Thread: Pondering the morality of quarantine regulation

  1. #1

    Pondering the morality of quarantine regulation

    I got to thinking about the possibility of a coronavirus outbreak here in the USA - in my backyard - and the likelyhood of government efforts to contain the virus by quarantining folks. I searched and found a page on the CDC website pertaining to quarantine regulations which states:
    Isolation and quarantine help protect the public by preventing exposure to people who have or may have a contagious disease.

    • Isolation separates sick people with a quarantinable communicable disease from people who are not sick.
    • Quarantine separates and restricts the movement of people who were exposed to a contagious disease to see if they become sick.

    In addition to serving as medical functions, isolation and quarantine also are “police power” functions, derived from the right of the state to take action affecting individuals for the benefit of society.

    Federal Law

    The federal government derives its authority for isolation and quarantine from the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

    Under section 361 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S. Code § 264), the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services is authorized to take measures to prevent the entry and spread of communicable diseases from foreign countries into the United States and between states.

    The authority for carrying out these functions on a daily basis has been delegated to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
    ...
    https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/speci...gulations.html

    It seems a bit of a stretch to me to justify quarantines on the basis of interstate trade, even when folks are traveling between states. But that leads me to the issue at hand - where is the line drawn (either morally or legally) for when the state may "take action affecting individuals for the benefit of society". Are individuals morally responsible for the butterfly effect of transmission of an infectuous disease? Are individuals responsible for their own health? Where is the line limiting government from totalitarian control of the populace over this pretext? I mean the common flu is a communicable disease. I imagine there are any number of communicable diseases which are prevalent and persistent in society which could be the basis for government action on these grounds.



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  3. #2
    Pretty sure their work around for a situation like this is to declare a state of emergency and then declare martial law.
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  4. #3
    I think every American should be provided a government-bought P100 respirator. If they buy in bulk, each respirator the government buys would probably only cost $10,000-$12,000

    It's a lot easier than quarantining everybody for sure
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  5. #4
    California Requires Free COVID-19 Testing
    Governor Intensifies State Response After First Death Announced

    Intensifying California’s efforts to contain COVID-19, Governor Gavin Newsom issued directives today addressing the anticipated public costs incurred for the illness, quarantine, and business effects, affecting as many as 24 million Californians. The first death in the state was reported on March 4, a man in his seventies who had returned from a Grand Princess cruise on February 21.


    At the governor’s direction, all full-service health insurance carriers must lower to zero the cost for screening for the virus, including co-pays, deductibles, and coinsurance. This includes hospital and emergency room visits, urgent care treatment, and visits to provider offices. The directive also states insurers must waive preauthorization when the care involves COVID-19, permit out-of-network care when required, and specifically mentions telehealth — or virtual visits with a health-care provider via video.


    Additionally, the governor announced support to citizens and businesses affected by the disease. Anyone who falls sick with COVID-19 and must stay home can file for disability insurance, which generally ranges from 60-70 percent of wages. Paid Family Leave is a form of disability insurance and is available for up to six weeks to people caring for a sick family member. For employers, the state has opened the UI Work Sharing Program, which enables employers to curtail worker hours if necessary and allows employees to receive unemployment insurance benefits to make up the shortfall in wages.


    California lawmakers have been asked for $20 million for the state’s COVID-19 response, and 21 million N95 masks were released from the state’s emergency supplies.


    Newsom’s office stated the provisions announced today addressed the rising COVID-19 numbers in California. In addition to the single death, 60 positive cases exist, and 9,400 people who had come through San Francisco or Los Angeles international airports were self-monitoring their health condition. Over the weekend, thousands of test kits had arrived from the Centers for Disease Control headed for 15 public health labs, including Ventura’s, with 48-hour turnarounds expected. With more people being tested, the number of COVID-19 positives is expected to climb.


    Except among the very young. A number of medical studies are agreeing that little to no illness appears in children 10 and younger but plenty of virus action, the Los Angeles Times reported. Because the children had less-developed immune system, the studies speculated, the immune response that caused pneumonia to flood the lungs was not happening in children. They simply had mild cold symptoms or the sniffles.

    https://www.independent.com/2020/03/05/california-requires-free-covid-19-testing/
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  6. #5
    IF the disease is contagious enough AND deadly enough then quarantines are moral, going out in public with such a disease is like walking around shooting a gun in random directions.
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  7. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Bern View Post
    Are individuals morally responsible for the butterfly effect of transmission of an infectuous disease? Are individuals responsible for their own health? Where is the line limiting government from totalitarian control of the populace over this pretext? I mean the common flu is a communicable disease. I imagine there are any number of communicable diseases which are prevalent and persistent in society which could be the basis for government action on these grounds.
    Quote Originally Posted by Swordsmyth View Post
    IF the disease is contagious enough AND deadly enough then quarantines are moral, going out in public with such a disease is like walking around shooting a gun in random directions.
    I'll agree with SS.

    It's perfectly just to restrain a person whose actions pose an imminent threat to others.

    If the person knows or should know of that risk, then he should have liability.

    If the person doesn't know and it's unreasonable to say that he should know, then he shouldn't be liable, but he can still be restrained.

    For example, suppose your neighbor is about to dump toxic waste on his property, which is likely to end up damaging your property.

    If he knows or should know of the risk, then he should be liable for whatever happens; if not, not.

    But, in either case, it would be just to forcibly prevent him from dumping that waste.



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