Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Mr. X


Emory University Hospital in Atlanta Georgia has treated and released an anonymous male Ebola patient this past Monday. This is independent of the known treatments of the high-profile nurse Vinson from Dallas who contracted Ebola from the Liberian national Thomas Duncan and two American aid workers, Dr. Kent Brantley and Nancy Writebol, who were treated and released in August. This Mr. X apparently might also have been an aid worker who contracted the virus in West Africa, but, according to other reporting, even this is not totally clear … see: Washington Post Story .

Hmmm? This news has peaked my curiosity … why all this government secrecy? How can our government surpress this news? Is this patient an American? Might he have contracted this virus in this country? How did he get Ebola? Have all the people he was in contact with before he was hospitalized been notified and/nor quarantined? How have this patient’s treatment expenses been covered? Could this Mr. X be just the first of many outreach patients as were reported on in this news article: Washington Examiner Story?

Hopefully, we will soon find out the answers to these and many other important public-health questions.

3 comments:

DEN said...

Have you heard of HIPPA? A patient's right to privacy is protected. You are NOT ENTITLED to that information.

George W. Potts said...

Except for the seven other Ebola patients treated in the U.S. Why was this dude so special?

George W. Potts said...

Also ... What if he wasn't an American? What if he walked out of the hospital before he was cured? That is when HIPPA would butt up against reality ...