A judge has ordered a woman who has tuberculosis to be detained in jail in order to forcefully isolate her and take treatment.
The woman, identified as V.N., has been found to be in contempt of court after having been non-compliant with court orders for isolation and treatment of tuberculosis for over a year.
In fact, she was recently seen leaving her home, riding a bus and visiting a local casino, according to court documents.
Her court-appointed attorney objected to an order of contempt and involuntary detention but on Friday, April 7, Pierce County Superior Court Judge Philip K. Sorensen issued an order reinforcing the earlier order.
The judge's latest order called for her to be detained in the Pierce County Jail to undergo testing and treatment for active TB "until medical tests conclusively establish that she no longer presents a threat to public health".
The woman's incomplete treatment has raised concerns among health officials about drug-resistant TB.
The next court review hearing for the case is scheduled for May 19.
In court documents seen by the News Tribune, Chief of Corrections Patricia Jackson said she had "directed an officer to surveil the respondent to determine her habits in order to execute the warrant in a safe manner."
The filing states that the officer "observed a person they believed to be the respondent leave her residence, get onto a city bus, and arrive at a local casino".
It added that in the following days, "the officer continued surveillance only to find respondent was not home".
The woman faced her first order for quarantine or isolation in mid-January 2022 and was then issued more than 20 orders throughout the year, culminating in the latest order of contempt and an arrest warrant.
She was diagnosed with tuberculosis in January 2022, after she was reportedly involved in a car accident and went to a hospital emergency room complaining of chest pains.
X-rays indicated progressing tuberculosis, according to court documents.
She also tested positive for COVID-19, "which also strongly suggests that she is not isolating as per this court’s order," a court filing from the health department said.
Tuberculosis (TB) is a serious and contagious bacterial infection that affects the lungs.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, TB bacteria spread through the air from one person to another.
When a person with TB disease of the lungs or throat coughs, speaks or sings, TB bacteria can get into the air, and people nearby may breathe in these bacteria and become infected.
Worldwide, TB is the 13th leading cause of death and the second leading infectious killer after COVID-19 (above HIV/AIDS), according to the World Health Organisation.
Although potentially deadly, TB is a treatable and curable disease. Drug-susceptible TB disease is treated with a standard 4-month or 6-month course of 4 antimicrobial drugs.
