This is what Americans feared and even on a small scale, there should be some type of hesitation.
On Saturday, the Rhode Island National Guard assisted state and local police with monitoring anyone who has traveled from New York in an attempt to enforce self-isolation orders. New York has been called the epicenter of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic in the United States.
It didn’t stop with house checks either. The Rhode Island state police started pulling over cars that were registered in New York while traveling I-95. If they were not in compliance, those individuals were advised to self-quarantine in accordance with the order.
Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo issued an executive order on Thursday establishing interstate stops and stationing officers at bus stops and train stations to identify New Yorkers and order them to self-quarantine.
“The Rhode Island National Guard has already been collecting contact information from passengers of mass transit, such as bus, trains, and planes,” SMSgt Miller said.
She continued: “Basic contact information is collected and handed over exclusively to the RI Department of Health, where it is used to conduct health and wellness follow-ups and contact tracing should someone fall ill. This contact information is not handed over to any other agencies and is not kept by the Rhode Island National Guard.”
The order applies to anyone who has been in New York within the past two weeks and will remain in place until at least April 25. The order does not apply to public health, public safety or health care workers. [Business Insider]
The measures have triggered criticism from civil-liberties advocates, who have accused Rhode Island officials of violating people’s Fourth Amendment rights.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo criticized the Rhode Island policy, telling CNN on Saturday he would sue Rhode Island if officials there don’t roll back the new measures.
This piece was written by Wayne Dupree on March 28, 2020. It originally appeared in WayneDupree.com [1] and is used by permission.
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