China: Quarantine Rules May Vary throughout China This Fall

No Comments | October 1st, 2009 | Trackback

National authorities instructed local and provincial officials to tighten disease control measures for residents and travelers as October holidays and the fall-winter flu season approached. According to the U.S. State Department, this means that local policies toward 2009-H1N1 influenza (swine flu) may be unpredictable, and quarantine of individuals with flu-like symptoms in hospitals is possible. From May through August thousands of Americans were quarantined but in September incidents were infrequent. As autumn progresses, more quarantine cases are likely, and in the event a family is quarantined the possibility exists of children being separated from their parents and being given medication without consent. Facilities may also be substandard, with inadequate food, impure drinking water and unsanitary conditions. Travel delays are also possible because of health screenings at airports and railway stations.