Of all the undesirable things that are more likely to happen to a person living in Russia, such as
car accidents and
plane crashes, contracting a case of
drug resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is my greatest fear. I think this stems from how much
TB risk is in the news and because it sounds like a horrible death. However, this article says that
we should ignore media reports when judging health risks to be accurate in our risk assessments. Additionally, I have read that most people judge risks based upon the painfulness of the outcome and not the actual end result*. Therefore, people are much more afraid of a slow painful death than a quick death such as heart attack. So intellectually, I know that my fear is rather irrational.
That brings me to the case of the Russian Robert Daniels (who is also a US citizen). He contracted TB while living in Russia and after returning to the US, he was put in a US prison for failing to wear his mask. I read about Robert some time ago, so I thought I would search to find out if he was out of prison by now and either at home or in hospital confinement.
Today, according to several of the links listed below, I read that he is not only still in jail, he is still being denied basic rights after nine months in prison. He has been in jail for nine months without a shower. Although he is not charged with a crime, he has not been given a television or an unmonitored telephone. He has been denied visitation rights even though a wearing a mask would greatly mitigate any risks of spreading the disease. He also has told the judge -- via phone since they did not let him leave his cell to go to court -- that he now understands the importance of wearing his mask and would wear it if they let him out. However, he still remains in prison under complete solitary lock down with a light on in his cell for 24 hours per day.
Here is a study that says just
sixty days in solitary confinement can cause a deterioration of mental health.
Granted, he should have worn his mask in the first place, but the conditions that they have put him in are excessive. Let the guy have a TV or a phone in his room. Let him turn off the light at night or take a shower.
The ACLU has decided to take his case.
Links: Democracy Now! | Is Sickness a Crime? Arizona Man With TB Locked Up Indefinitely in Solitary Confinement
Blog commenting on
the lack of any hard data in any of the risk scare tactics around the dangers of TB.
Typical fear mongering title in TB related articles:
Virulent New Strain of TB Raising Fears of Pandemic - washingtonpost.com Update October 11, 2007: TB prisoner Robert Daniels has fled Arizona for Russia to avoid further "abuse"
* I searched for the link, but could not find it.
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