Georgia Lawmaker Asks if People With HIV Can Be “Legally” Quarantined To Keep The Disease From Spreading

The wife of Trump’s former Health Secretary, Tom Price, is facing backlash for suggesting that people with HIV could be “quarantined” to help prevent the disease from spreading.

“I don’t want to say the quarantine word – but I guess I just said it,” Georgia lawmaker, #BettyPrice said. “But is there an ability, since I guess public dollars are expended heavily in prophylaxis and treatment of this condition, so we have a public interest in curtailing the spread…Are there any methods we could do legally to curtail the spread.”

Price asked the question in a hearing on Tuesday, during a Georgia House of Representative study committee meeting. Price, who represents the northern Atlanta area of Georgia, claimed her concern came from the “frightening” number of people who are living and carrying the disease.

According to reports, back in 2014, a study showed nearly 50,000 people were diagnosed with HIV in Georgia, with the second highest rate of new diagnoses among all states in 2015.

“It’s almost frightening the number of people who are living that are carriers with the potential to spread,” she said. “Whereas in the past, they died more readily, and at that point, they’re not posing a risk. So we’ve got a huge population posing a risk if they’re not in treatment.”

As a result, advocacy groups have demanded an apology from Price, calling her comments “reprehensible” coming from a physician and lawmaker. Price is also an anesthesiologist.