North Dakota and Coronavirus Quarantines

 

I lived in North Dakota for about seven years, so it makes me sad to realize that while the state leads the nation in cases per capita, the governor has rescinded an order that makes in necessary for those who were in close contact with covid-19 positive people to quarantine. The statement is as follows:

Republican Gov. Doug Burgum said in a Thursday news release "we need a light touch of government with more local leadership and collaboration, and we feel we can better support those efforts by working more closely with local public health and community leaders to identify mitigation strategies that will work and be supported in each community."

Update from the Grand Forks Herald:

BISMARCK — North Dakota interim State Health Officer Dr. Paul Mariani has resigned after less than a month on the job. He's the third person to step down from the position during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The announcement of Mariani's departure on Friday evening, Sept. 25, comes a day after the state rescinded an order requiring close contacts of known COVID-19 cases to quarantine. Gov. Doug Burgum and other Republican leaders faced intense backlash after the order was expanded Wednesday. Critics of the quarantine mandate said a provision in the order that meant violators could face Class B misdemeanor charges was an overreach by government.

Mariani's departure comes after two of his recent predecessors left the state's top public health role under mysterious circumstances. Last month, Dr. Andrew Stahl stepped down from the same position amid disagreements with the governor's office over the state's COVID-19 risk level designations. Mylynn Tufte abruptly resigned as state health officer in May. Burgum repeatedly refused to directly answer whether Tufte had been asked to resign.