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Monday, August 27, 2007
Should teen have been jailed for refusing tuberculosis treatment?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By A 17-year-old Gwinnett County resident diagnosed with tuberculosis has started taking medicine for the disease, but he remains in a medical isolation cell in the Gwinnett jail, Sheriff Butch Conway said.
Gwinnett health officials jailed Francisco Santos Friday after he refused to accept treatment for an active, contagious case of tuberculosis. Santos said he was leaving the country to return to his native Mexico, health officials said.
“I think he was scared,” said David Will, attorney for the Gwinnett County Board of Health.
Officials were aware of the recent incident involving Atlanta lawyer Andrew Speaker, who also has tuberculosis. After Speaker left for his wedding in Greece, a national news conference set off an international health scare.
In this case, the Gwinnett officials acted decisively: they put Santos in jail Friday evening, in a rare act of a government agency confining a sick person. Santos is in a special medical isolation cell designed for inmates with contagious conditions. The cell, which measures about 15 feet by 20 feet, has a special ventilation system that keeps the air from reaching other inmates.
Did officials do the right thing?
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