Want the best of VICE News straight to your inbox? Sign up here.As it turns out, Jared Evans was one of the first Americans forcibly quarantined by the federal government in more than 50 years.Evans, an American professional football player, was playing in a league in China when COVID-19 first broke out in Wuhan. In January, he and other Americans were flown to a military base in California, where they were forced to quarantine for weeks."It would either be that or I guess in jail," Evans told VICE News.Although President Trump has not taken the step of issuing a nationwide quarantine order, the federal government does have the authority to do so. It rarely flexes the power and, instead, chooses to delegate the responsibility to state and local authorities.People subject to quarantines can also challenge the order in court. And in the past, many have won.VICE News looks back at government attempts to impose orders of isolation and quarantine to find instances when it was successful — and when it failed.
Yes, the Federal Government Can Force You Into Quarantine
Although President Trump has not taken the step of issuing a nationwide quarantine order, the federal government does have the authority to do so