Remember the original CDC guidance regarding Ebola? You know, no need to worry unless an exposed individual became symptomatic \u2013 and no recommended restrictions on their movement unless the person had a fever of 100.4F or higher? Those policies allowed the second US nurse who acquired Ebola in Dallas to travel halfway across the country while incubating (and, potentially, while in the early stages of being symptomatic).<\/p>\n
Well, apparently even the CDC can recognize being whacked in the face by reality.\u00a0 They\u2019ve now changed their tune much closer to what common sense says it should have been all along.\u00a0 The CDC now recommends that anyone who is at \u201chigh risk\u201d for Ebola exposure should \u201cstay home\u201d for 21 days<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, don\u2019t start singing the \u201cHallelujah Chorus\u201d just yet.\u00a0 Under the new CDC guidelines, \u201cstay home\u201d doesn\u2019t really mean \u201cstay at home 24\/7\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0 Such individuals would indeed be allowed to leave their homes \u2013 to “jog in a public park”, for example \u2013 but would also be told to avoid “congregate gatherings” like sports events.<\/p>\n Yeah, that last bit makes just no freaking sense at all.\u00a0 Last time I checked public parks can get pretty damn crowded, especially in big cities.\u00a0 People jogging in a crowded park sometimes bump into other people – while sweating profusely.\u00a0 They also often drink from public water fountains while jogging or after they finish.\u00a0 Sometimes they clear their throat and spit, too.<\/p>\n I just can’t see how crowds at public parks differ substantially from other \u201ccongregate gatherings\u201d like sports events.\u00a0 Those at high risk should be told to stay home \u2013 period.<\/p>\n Frankly, IMO the CDC simply hasn\u2019t gone far enough here.\u00a0 “Stay home” should be unconditional.<\/p>\n And they’re IMO missing the boat in another way, too.\u00a0 Depending on voluntary, unenforced quarantines . . . is problematic.\u00a0 We\u2019ve already seen multiple examples of people who knew they fell into the CDC\u2019s \u201chigh risk\u201d or \u201csome risk\u201d categories thumbing their nose at common sense (probably due to the \u201cIt can\u2019t happen to me\u201d mindset) and put others at risk by going out in public within 21 days of exposure.<\/p>\n Depending on voluntary self-quarantine will work just as well as the following.\u00a0 Put a cookie jar on a low table.\u00a0 Tell your mischievous 5 year old to keep their hands off, since they’ll be having dinner in a hour.\u00a0 Then leave them alone and unsupervised in the same room with that cookie jar for that hour.<\/p>\n In other words:\u00a0 without enforcement, home self-quarantine is just not going to work worth a damn.\u00a0 People are people; everyone thinks, “It can’t happen to me” – until it does.\u00a0 And all it will take is one idiot guessing wrong to cause a serious problem.<\/p>\n The CDC has also moved the goalposts on how it defines Ebola exposure risk categories<\/a> \u2013 and IMO, this time they\u2019re moving them in the right direction.\u00a0 Previously, spending an extended amount of time in close proximity to an Ebola sufferer without protective equipment was considered \u201clow risk exposure\u201d.\u00a0 Now, it\u2019s categorized as \u201csome risk\u201d \u2013 a new, higher-risk category. Spending a brief period of time in close proximity to an Ebola sufferer was previously not categorized as any type of exposure. Now it\u2019s categorized as a \u201clow-risk\u201d exposure.<\/p>\n Under the new guidelines, the CDC recommends local health authorities should make the call on whether or not to restrict movement of \u201csome risk\u201d exposure individuals.\u00a0 The\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 whiny ditz and special little snowflake<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 recently returned nurse who was quarantined in New Jersey, then allowed to return to Maine falls into the \u201csome risk\u201d category under the new guidelines.<\/p>\n Perhaps the Maine public health officials will show some backbone and continue to follow the New Jersey lead.\u00a0 Unfortunately, until there\u2019s an outbreak there I\u2019m not holding my breath.<\/p>\n Finally, in semi-related good news:\u00a0 the kid hospitalized in NYC as a possible Ebola case had a negative initial test<\/a> for the virus.\u00a0 He\u2019s still in isolation pending future follow-up testing.\u00a0 If that future testing shows he\u2019s not infected, he\u2019ll be given the green light to go home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"