American citizens wanting to return to the US could be contagious too. Ultimately US citizens should not be excluded from entering the US. That might not even be legal to exclude American citizens.
I would hope we always look out for our own citizens.
It was said that US Citizens would need to pass tests. Itâll be interesting to see details on that and how well they are enforced.
@sorghum not that I can think of. They can, however, quarantine citizens for basically as long as they want wherever they want.
Iâm not entirely sure who would enforce the laws if it was illegal.
On another note - the infectious disease person said that theyâre looking at Plaquenil (an anti-malarial med I take for lupus) as a possible treatment for COVID-19. So thereâs that.
@doschicos Do you think a mandatory self quarantine following foreign travel is feasible?
Also, could we also nationalize nursing students who are in the clinical level stage to help with the pressure in their nearby hospitals. With pay of course.
I listened to an interview with an attorney who said that the feds and states have broad powers to quarantine in such an emergency, but that the fedsâ authority had not been used âin the common era.â (whatever that mean)
Quarantine: Yes. Weâve basically done that already with the evacuated people from Wuhan and Diamond Princess, right?
I think weâll need to get nursing and med students onboard if/when things get bad enough, especially if we see a huge spike in cases. They can handle the âeasyâ stuff while freeing up seasoned medical personnel for the more challenging work. Young people will be better than retired nurses and doctors, IMO, because of how Covid-19 affects different demographics.
I think quarantining returning US citizens is feasible. I think banning their return is not appropriate, possibly not legal.
âU.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that trade will not be affected by the 30-day restrictions on travel from Europe, apparently rolling back on comments he made in a speech earlier in the evening.â
Well, thereâs some clear and focussed communication.
From the document:
This does not apply to legal permanent residents, (generally) immediate family members of U.S. citizens, and other individuals who are identified in the proclamation.
So even green card holders and immediate family of US citizens can travel to the US.
@romanigypsyeyes Interesting about Plaquenil. H was on it for 2-3 years for sarcoidosis in the lungs. Itâs very cheap (was $5/mo a decade ago) and was very effective for his lungs. Maybe thatâs a glimmer of hope.
Yes, the president addressed the American people and give 2 pieces of incorrect information. Par for the course:
-American Citizens and Legal green card holders and their family can travel from Europe (exempt - clarified via proclamation from Homeland Security)
-Cargo and Trade is not part of the ban. (clarified via Twitter)
This makes me feel so safe and secure. No talk of what we are doing here, other than tax cuts and other economic ideas. He left China off the hook - didnât specify other than saying âForeignâ. So the bad guy is now Europe.
In 2 weeks, foreign countries will ban us.
Talked to a friend tonight whose husband is a high level doctor/administrator at a big hospital in a major midwestern city. There was a meeting this evening with senior leadership at his hospital that he attended. The takeaway was that while they are doing all they can to prepare, itâs going to be bad. Said social distancing is best hope at this point to slow infections. There are too few beds and not enough ventilators to meet expected needs.
Itâs so odd to say something and roll it back. Iâd love to be a fly in the room to know how things proceeded. Was it an old version of the speech that was mistakenly used? Were the changes made after the speech or before? Obviously they were in the mix of proposals at some point. Glad the corrections were made but disappointing to see them on the table. If this speech was supposed to calm the American public and give them confidence in leadership, I think the performance fell off the mark.
I feel safer with travel from Europe being banned.
Iâm sure if we have more cases than some other countries that they would be prudent to ban travel from our citizens.
Apparently travel bans from regions with more cases help to slow the spread. Makes sense to me.
@BunsenBurner - Iâm doing what I can, teaching AP Chemistry to interested youth! 
Interesting wrinkle about the NBA suspension. It was supposed to take effect âafter tonightâs gamesâ and there was one more game between the Kings and the Pelicans about to start. The Pelicans refused to come out and the game was eventually cancelled. I like that this group just decided - nope, not worth the risk. We need more of that.
In a town facebook group, there is a discussion of Covid-19. Several posters are in denial, continuing with the âjust like the fluâ line of thinking and calling people out for panicking and hysteria. One of them suddenly changed his tune tonight for 2 reasons that he stated: 1) Tom Hanks and 2) NBA cancelling the remainder of the season. Sure, buddy, just ignore the 126K cases and 4.6K deaths that are climbing daily. 
Do you wish there had been more talk of what the government has planned for here in the US to meet what will be the rising need for more health care, action items for attempting to flatten the curve?
North Dakota has just announced the stateâs first case of coronavirus.
The presumptive positive case is a resident in his 60s from Ward County, according to a news release from North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum.
The patient had traveled out of state, and had contact with another infected person, said the news release. He has not been hospitalized, and is now self-isolating at home.
Congressional staffer tests positive for coronavirus
From CNN
An employee in Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwellâs office is the first publicly known case of a congressional staffer testing positive for coronavirus.
According to a statement from her office, the staffer had no known contact with Cantwell, who represents Washington state, or other members of Congress.
âThe individual who tested positive for COVID-19 has had no known contact with the senator or other members of Congress,â the statement said. âThe senator is requesting that testing be done on any other staffers who have been in contact with the individual and show symptoms.â
There are at least 373 cases of coronavirus in Washington state. At least 30 people have died from coronavirus.
I donât know if itâs feasible, but itâs the responsible thing to do.
My husband is flying back from London tomorrow and plans to self-quarantine. Fortunately he is able to work from home.
Itâll be interesting to hear if there is a single open seat on his flight.
It was relatively empty when he flew to London on Sunday. Trumpâs announcement was made when most in Europe were probably already in bed so theyâll have to scramble to make it out on my husbandâs flight if they hadnât already planned to be on it.
Iâll update tomorrow what kinds of questions/treatment he receives by airport/customs officials when he arrives back in the U.S.