Pres. Obama on Ebola Quarantine

[meltoine]

I'm posting this article for the quote mostly, and not for the article itself. But I do think the author has a point. I think Pres. Obama's comments are weird, especially considering the terms of the deployments for Ebola support. The returning deployers will be quarantined for 60 days, not just the 21 they are asking of civilians. 

I also admit that I was with the Maine nurse until she started resisting in-home quarantine. I think she's being needlessly inflammatory with that nonsense, so Pres. Obama saying that it's totally fine to tack an extra two months onto a deployment for military members to be quarantined, but civilians can go right home, is rubbing me the wrong way. 

Thoughts?

article

[Dory1988]

Coming from a service member and a healthcare worker...
As far as that signaling nurse goes, she should know better. She has chosen a job where she is supposed to go above and beyond to PROTECT the health of the general public. To me, and several other employees here, she should be more than willing to adhere to a 21 day in home quarantine. That's not really all that unreasonable and it's for the safety others, the people that you set out to make and keep healthy.

I'm not sure the reasoning behind a 90 day quarantine. We were only aware of the 21 day quarantine. Anyway, when we volunteered for the military we did it knowing that we were giving up the ability to choose for ourselves on some level and that's my response to the writer of the post. I'm also sure the president's definition of volunteer is some one who doesn't get paid for what they do in this particular speech. Back to the topic...I can only speculate that a 90 day quarantine could be because we typically live in very close proximity to one another (base housing, barracks). I don't know that's my only theory right now.

That's pretty much all I've got.

[ohyouknow]

She lost me when she started in on the "my husband missed Christmases, birthdays, milestones" stuff. It's fine if non-military folks want to talk about that stuff, but I hate it when military families do, it seems like pandering for sympathy and martyrdom.

I get it, it's a volunteer military, but ONCE YOU VOLUNTEER you do what you're told. Period. If they say quarantine for 60 days, you do it, because you volunteered to serve, you've accepted the pay and benefits in exchange, and now you do your duty. Done.

[Dory1988]

Oct 30, 2014 13:04:36 GMT -5 Stan said:

Sounds good to me, but I'm in a scamming phase of my career.

I feel ya...any amount of quarantine sounds great to me lol.

[meltoine]

Oct 30, 2014 12:22:52 GMT -5 ohyouknow said:

I get it, it's a volunteer military, but ONCE YOU VOLUNTEER you do what you're told. Period. If they say quarantine for 60 days, you do it, because you volunteered to serve, you've accepted the pay and benefits in exchange, and now you do your duty. Done.

But why does this not also apply to civilian volunteers? The nurse in Maine volunteered too, and I'm pretty sure she got paid. Why is he saying that just because she's a civilian she doesn't need to be quarantined. 

[Dory1988]

Oct 30, 2014 13:48:51 GMT -5 meltoine said:

Oct 30, 2014 12:22:52 GMT -5 ohyouknow said:

I get it, it's a volunteer military, but ONCE YOU VOLUNTEER you do what you're told. Period. If they say quarantine for 60 days, you do it, because you volunteered to serve, you've accepted the pay and benefits in exchange, and now you do your duty. Done.

But why does this not also apply to civilian volunteers? The nurse in Maine volunteered too, and I'm pretty sure she got paid. Why is he saying that just because she's a civilian she doesn't need to be quarantined. 

I'm seeing your point. There's no real explanation for the difference in quarantine times. That is what doesn't make sense. The question is not why you have to do it it's why is there a difference because, in theory, all people coming back from Ebola areas should be treated the same. "ONCE YOU VOLUNTEER you do what you're told" doesn't tell us why military should be quarantined for 60 days while civilians are only quarantined for 21.

[amaristella]

This is the first I've heard of the extra long quarantine for military. That alone is just weird. And honestly I do not mind having that nurse made an example of. I understand not wanting to live in a tent in a hospital or whatever they might have proposed but not even in your own house? What is her reasoning? Just that she doesn't think she was properly exposed/at risk?

Edit: Well, shit. I really wish I hadn't read the article beyond the quote. Almost to the point of eye bleach.

[ohyouknow]

I re-read this because everything in the news is saying the military quarantine is 21 days. Where did we get the idea that the military quarantine is 60 days, other than OP's post?

[meltoine]

Nov 4, 2014 11:39:12 GMT -5 ohyouknow said:

I re-read this because everything in the news is saying the military quarantine is 21 days. Where did we get the idea that the military quarantine is 60 days, other than OP's post?

MH was told 60 days in a briefing about the deployment. 

[ohyouknow]

I wonder if the briefer misspoke - there is literally nothing in any news article anywhere that references 60 days. Everything says that military is 21 days, whereas the civilian volunteers are not being physically quarantined and instead they are self-monitoring for 21 days by taking temps, etc. They said the military is quarantined on base for 21 days due to most of them not being medical professionals.