Legal Authorities for Isolation and Quarantine
Isolation and Quarantine
Isolation and quarantine help protect the public by preventing exposure to people who have or may have a contagious disease.
Isolation separates sick people with a contagious disease from people who are not sick.
Quarantine separates and restricts the movement of people who were exposed to a contagious disease to see if they became sick.
In addition to serving as medical functions, isolation and quarantine also are “police power" functions, derived from the right of the state to take action affecting individuals for benefit of society.
Federal Isolation and Quarantine are authorized by Presidential Executive Order for these Communicable Diseases:
- Cholera
- Diphtheria
- Infectious tuberculosis
- Plague
- Smallpox
- Yellow fever
- Viral hemorrhagic fevers
- Severe acute respiratory syndromes
- Flu that can cause a pandemic
- Measles
Who Is in Charge?
The Federal Government
- Acts to prevent the entry of communicable diseases into the United States. Quarantine and isolation may be used at U.S ports of entry.
- Is authorized to take measures to prevent the spread of communicable disease between states.
- May accept state and local assistance in enforcing federal quarantine.
- May assist state and local authorities in preventing the spread of communicable diseases.
State, Local, And Tribal Authorities
- Enforce isolation and quarantine within their borders
It is possible for federal, state, local, and tribal health authorities to have and use all at the same time separate but coexisting legal quarantine power in certain events. In the event of a conflict, federal law is supreme.
For additional information: https://www.cdc.gov/port-health/legal-authorities/isolation-quarantine.html
