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Judge won't allow Maine to quarantine Ebola nurse

A Maine judge denied the state's request to require Ebola nurse Kaci Hickox to obey a quarantine.

By Gabrielle Levy

FORT KENT, Maine, Oct. 31 (UPI) -- A Maine District Court judge will not allow state health officials to force nurse Kaci Hickox to obey a quarantine, allowing her to enter public places.

Chief Judge Charles LaVerdier issued a temporary order Friday that requires Hickox to comply with monitoring by public health officials, coordinate her travel with authorities and immediately notify authorities if any symptom of Ebola appears.

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The ruling is a victory for Hickox, who has fought against attempts to quarantine her since she returned from treating Ebola patients in Sierra Leone last Friday.

Friday's order rolls back one LaVerdier issued Thursday, which granted the state's petition to restrict Hickox's movements, preventing her from coming within three feet of people in public and requiring her to stay in Fort Kent.

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In his ruling Friday, LaVerdier slammed attempts to quarantine Hickox, even though she has tested negative for Ebola and is showing no symptoms, meaning she cannot be contagious.

"The court is fully aware of the misconceptions, misinformation, bad science and bad information being spread from shore to shore in our country with respect to Ebola," LaVerdier wrote. "The court is fully aware that people are acting out of fear and that this fear is not entirely rational."

Still, he warned that she should act cautiously, knowing that people are worried about the spread of the disease.

"However, whether this fear is rational or not, it is present and it is real," he wrote. Hickox's "actions at this point, as a healthcare professional, need to demonstrate her full understanding and the real fear that exists. She should guide herself accordingly."

The order will remain in effect until a hearing, scheduled for Nov. 4, can determine if a permanent order should be issued.

Friday's ruling remains in line with guidelines issued Monday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that categorize healthcare workers who have had direct contact with Ebola patients, but were careful about wearing personal protective gear as "some risk."

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The Obama administration, meanwhile has been deeply critical of the states that have pushed for measures exceeding those guidelines, including New York, New Jersey, Maine, Illinois and Florida.

"We have to keep in mind that if we're discouraging our healthcare workers, who are prepared to make these sacrifices, from traveling to these places in need, then we're not doing our job in terms of looking after our own public health and safety," President Barack Obama said Wednesday.

"We've got hundreds of Americans from across the country -- nurses, doctors, public health workers, soldiers, engineers, mechanics -- who are putting themselves on the front lines of this fight," he said. "When they come home, they deserve to be treated properly. They deserve to be treated like the heroes that they are."

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