Can police force you to quarantine for COVID? Tri-Cities rumors swirl

The Washington state Board of Health will not be voting to use police to enforce COVID-19 quarantines and will not be voting on requiring COVID-19 vaccines for school-aged children at its January meeting.

The board’s staff put out that statement in response to rumors circulating on the internet about the board’s 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Jan. 12 public meeting.

Benton County Sheriff Tom Croskrey issued a statement to news media Monday evening saying he was looking into questions from Tri-Cities area residents about the upcoming state meeting being a precursor to involuntary isolation or quarantine.

He said he had not been able to find out exactly what would be discussed at the online meeting, but will be attending it. In the mean time, he urged patience.

“As your sheriff, I am committed to protecting the constitutional rights of all who reside in Benton County,” he said. “The State Health Board has no authority to force me or my designees to forcefully detain people for non-criminal matters or restrict their movement.”

The Washington Policy Center, a conservative think tank, posted on Friday that misinformation was circulating about the Jan. 12 meeting.

“I have been told by sources in the Legislature, the Department of Health and the SBOH (state Board of Health) that the suggestion is false,” said Elizabeth Hovde, the center’s policy analyst in its website, about the rumor that law enforcement would detain people who don’t isolate or quarantine.

This ‘isn’t happening at all,’ she said she was told by state board member Temple Lentz. “This meeting isn’t what they are being told,’” Hovde said Lentz told her.

The board will consider proposed changes to rules for communicable diseases, but that will not include changes to isolation and quarantine policies or a suggestion that law enforcement be used to enforce any vaccination requirements, according to board staff.

The board also will receive a briefing Jan. 12 on the work of a technical advisory group that is considering whether COVID-19 should be added to the list of required vaccines, such as chickenpox, polio and measles, for children attending schools or child care centers.

Like other vaccines, exemptions would be available for families who choose not to get their children vaccinated against COVID-19. Exemptions can be for medical, religious, philosophical or personal reasons.

However, the board will not be taking action at the Jan. 12 meeting on a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for school-age children, according to board staff.

The technical advisory group is still working on the issue, according to the Washington Policy Group.

While the Washington Policy Group called rumors circulating on the internet about the meeting false, it also noted that “What was once unthinkable has become thinkable.”

“Two years ago, no one would think policies like the quarantine of unvaccinated individuals could happen,” Hovde posted. “We’d roll our eyes and chuckle when seeing such an email announcement or Facebook post. In today’s Washington, it feels possible.”

The “coercive, restrictive climate” created by federal, state and local leaders with mandates, firings and closures “makes people’s reaction to hearing false policy proposals perfectly natural,” she said.

How to watch board meeting

Those who want to watch the Jan. 12 meeting of the state board can find registration information at bit.ly/SBODJan12.

They also can dial-in and listen a 253-215-8782, which is not a toll-free number. They will need to provide webinar ID 894-7406-4216 and passcode 957396.

The meeting also will be broadcast online at TVW. Go to bit.ly/TVWbroadcastJan12.

The meeting agenda puts the briefing of the immunization technical advisory group on vaccine requirements for schoolchildren at about 12:20 p.m.

The discussion on communicable diseases, the matter than concerns Croskrey, could be held at about 1:30 p.m. Public comments may be heard then, but it could be limited based on the number of people signed up to speak.

Comments may be emailed to wsboh@sboh.wa.gov.

This story was originally published January 11, 2022 at 4:00 AM.