steveox
Well-Known Member
TB patient charged in Calif for not taking meds
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Armando Rodriguez was warned several times to continue taking his tuberculosis medicine.
At one point, authorities said, he told his case officer he stopped the treatment out of concern for his liver while binging on alcohol and methamphetamine.
So on Tuesday, authorities took the unusual step of arresting Rodriguez and charging him with refusing to comply with a tuberculosis order to be at home at certain times and make appointments to take his medication.
It's a move that divides public health officials.
"I think it's an error to confine someone in the criminal justice system for a public health crime," said Lawrence Gostin, a Georgetown University public health law professor who drafted a model law adopted by several states struggling with the issue. "The whole intention is to protect the public's health. It's not to lay blame on someone."
http://health.yahoo.net/news/s/ap/tb-patient-charged-in-calif-for-not-taking-meds
This is the stuff the Soviets used to do
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Armando Rodriguez was warned several times to continue taking his tuberculosis medicine.
At one point, authorities said, he told his case officer he stopped the treatment out of concern for his liver while binging on alcohol and methamphetamine.
So on Tuesday, authorities took the unusual step of arresting Rodriguez and charging him with refusing to comply with a tuberculosis order to be at home at certain times and make appointments to take his medication.
It's a move that divides public health officials.
"I think it's an error to confine someone in the criminal justice system for a public health crime," said Lawrence Gostin, a Georgetown University public health law professor who drafted a model law adopted by several states struggling with the issue. "The whole intention is to protect the public's health. It's not to lay blame on someone."
http://health.yahoo.net/news/s/ap/tb-patient-charged-in-calif-for-not-taking-meds
This is the stuff the Soviets used to do