Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. this week refused to release a cruise ship passenger exposed to hantavirus in early May from a quarantine facility in Nebraska -- despite a federal medical review that said there's no need to confine her far from her Florida home.
The order from Kennedy, one of the nation's most prominent critics of vaccine mandates, lockdowns, and other government public health restrictions, spurred outrage from some advocates and legal scholars, who called it illegal and rooted in politics rather than public health.
The passenger, Angela Perryman, remained detained as of Tuesday.
"I want to be able to walk outside and put my feet in the grass," Perryman said in an interview. "I want to be able to feel fresh air on my face when I want to. I want to be able to see people that are not in full PPE. I don't want to be dehumanized anymore."
Courtney Spencer, an HHS spokesperson, said Florida chose not to comply with the federal government's conditions for how tightly to monitor Perryman if she went back home. Continuing the quarantine order was "necessary to ensure both Ms. Perryman's and her community's well-being," she said.
