Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 19, March 20, 2024
(1)
General provisions. The department and local boards of health
are authorized to impose and enforce area quarantine in accordance with this
rule. Area quarantine shall rarely be imposed by the department or by local
boards of health.
(2)
Conditions and principles. The department and local boards of
health shall adhere to all of the following conditions and principles when
imposing and enforcing area quarantine:
a.
Area quarantine shall be imposed by the least restrictive means necessary to
prevent or contain the spread of a suspected or confirmed quarantinable disease
or suspected or known hazardous or toxic agent.
b. Area quarantine shall be immediately
terminated when the department or a local board of health determines that no
substantial risk of exposure to a quarantinable disease or hazardous or toxic
agent continues to exist.
c. The
geographic boiundaries of an area quarantine shall be established by risk
assessment procedures including medical and scientific analysis of the
quarantinable disease or hazardous or toxic agent, the location of the affected
area, the risk of spread or contamination, and other relevant
information.
(3)
Area quarantine sites.
a.
Sites of area quarantine shall be prominently identified to restrict ingress to
and egress from the area, to the extent practicable. The department or a local
board of health may placard or otherwise identify the site, or may request the
assistance of law enforcement in identifying the site.
b. No individual, other than an individual
authorized by the department or a local board of health, shall enter a
building, structure, or other physical location subject to area quarantine. The
department or a local board of health may authorize public health officials,
environmental specialists, health care providers, or others access to an area
quarantine site as necessary to conduct public health investigations, to
decontaminate the site, or for other public health purposes. Notwithstanding
any provision in this chapter to the contrary, law enforcement, fire service,
and emergency medical service providers may enter an area quarantine site to
provide emergency response services or to conduct emergency law enforcement
investigations or other emergency activities without authorization by the
department or a local board of health. If the department has requested the
assistance of law enforcement in enforcing the area quarantine, the department
shall provide law enforcement personnel with a list of individuals authorized
to enter the area quarantine site.
c. An individual authorized to enter an area
quarantine site may be required to wear personal protective equipment as
appropriate.
d. No individual,
other than an individual authorized by the department or a local board of
health, shall remove any item or object from a building, structure, or other
physical location subject to area quarantine.
e. An individual entering an area quarantine
site without authorization of the department or a local board of health may be
isolated or quarantined pursuant to rule
641-1.9
(135,139A) and may be found guilty of a simple misdemeanor
(4)
Area quarantine by local boards
of health or the department of public health,
a.
Authority.
(1) The department, through the director, the
department's medical director, or the director or medical director's designee,
may impose area quarantine through oral or written order. Prior to imposing
area quarantine, the department shall attempt to notify the local board or
boards of health in the affected geographic area. If attempts to notify the
local boards of health are initially unsuccessful, the department shall
continue to make regular notification attempts until successful.
(2) A local board of health may impose area
quarantine through oral or written order Prior to imposing area quarantine, a
local board of health shall attempt to notify the department by contacting the
director, medical director, or department duty officer by telephone. If
attempts to notify the department are initially unsuccessful, the local board
of health shall continue to make regular notification attempts until
successful.
b.
Temporary area quarantine without notice. The department or a local
board of health may temporarily impose area quarantine through an oral order,
without notice, only if delay in imposing area quarantine would significantly
jeopardize the department's or local board's ability to prevent or contain the
spread of a suspected or confirmed quarantinable disease or to prevent or
contain exposure to a suspected or known hazardous or toxic agent. If the
department or local board imposes temporary area quarantine through an oral
order, a written order shall be issued as soon as is reasonably possible and in
all cases within 24 hours of issuance of the oral order if continued area
quarantine is necessary.
c.
Written order The department or local board may impose area
quarantine through a written order issued pursuant to this rule.
(1) The written order shall include all of
the following:
1. The building or buildings,
structure or structures, or other definable physical location, or portion
thereof, subject to area quarantine.
2. The date and time at which area quarantine
commences and the date and time at which the area quarantine shall be
terminated, if known.
3. The
suspected or confirmed quarantinable disease or the chemical, biological,
radioactive, or other hazardous or toxic agent.
4. A statement of compliance with the
conditions and principles for area quarantine specified in subrule
1.13(2).
5. The legal authority
under which the order is imposed.
6. The medical or scientific basis upon which
area quarantine is justified.
7. A
statement advising the owner or owners of the building or buildings, structure
or structures, or other definable physical location subject to area quarantine
of the right to appeal the written order pursuant to subrule 1.13 (5) and the
rights of owners of sites subject to area quarantine pursuant to subrule
1.13(6).
8. A copy of 641-Chapter 1
and the relevant provisions of this rule.
(2) A copy of the written order shall be
provided to the owner or owners of the building or buildings, structure or
structures, or other definable physical location subject to area quarantine
within 24 hours of issuance of the order in accordance with any applicable
process authorized by the Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure; or, if the order
applies to a group of owners and it is impractical to provide individual notice
to each owner, the written order shall be posted in a conspicuous place at the
site of area quarantine.
(5)
Appeal from order imposing area
quarantine.
a.
Contested
case. The subject of a department order imposing area quarantine may
appeal a written order and has the right to a contested case hearing regarding
such appeal. The subject of a department order imposing area quarantine may
appeal the order by submitting a written appeal within 10 days of receipt or
other notice of the written order The appeal shall be addressed to the Local
Board of Health or to the Department of Public Health, Division of Acute
Disease Prevention and Emergency Response, Lucas State Office Building, Des
Moines, Iowa 50319-0075. Unless stayed by order of the director or a district
court, the written order for area quarantine shall remain in force and effect
until the appeal is finally determined and disposed of upon its
merits.
b.
Presiding
officer The presiding officer in a contested case shall be the
director or the director's designee. The director or the director's designee
may be assisted by an administrative law judge in conducting the contested case
hearing. The decision of the director or the director's designee shall be the
agency's final decision and is subject to judicial review in accordance with
the provisions of Iowa Code chapter 17A.
c.
Proceeding. The contested
case hearing shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions contained at
641-Chapter 173. The hearing shall be held as soon as is practicable, and in no
case later than 10 days from the date of receipt of the appeal. In
extraordinary circumstances and for good cause shown, the department may apply
to continue the hearing date on a petition filed pursuant to this paragraph for
up to 10 days, which continuance the presiding officer may grant in the
presiding officer's discretion giving due regard to the rights of the ailected
individuals, the protection of the public's health, and the availability of
necessary witnesses and evidence.
d.
Judicial review. The aggrieved party to the final
decision of the department may petition for judicial review of that action
pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 17A. Petitions for judicial review shall be filed
within 30 days after the decision becomes final.
e.
Immediate judicial review of
department order The department or local board acknowledges that in
certain circumstances the subject or subjects of a department order may desire
immediate judicial review of a department order in lieu of proceeding with the
contested case process. The department recognizes that the procedural step of
pursuing exhaustion of administrative remedies may be inadequate for purposes
of Iowa Code section 17A. 19, and the department may consent to immediate
jurisdiction of the district court when requested by the subject or subjects of
a department order and justice so requires. Unless stayed by order of the
director or a district court, the written order for area quarantine shall
remain in force and effect until the judicial review is finally determined and
disposed of upon its merits.
(6)
Rights of owners of sites subject
to area quarantine. An owner of a building, structure, or other
physical location subject to area quarantine shall have the following rights:
a. The right to be represented by legal
counsel.
b. The right to be
provided with prior notice of the date, time, and location of any
hearing.
c. The right to
participate in any hearing.
d. The
right to respond and present evidence and argument on the owner's own behalf in
any hearing.
e. The right to
cross-examine witnesses who testify against the owner or individual.
f. The right to view and copy all records in
the possession of the department which relate to the subject of the written
order
(7)
Consolidation of claims. In any proceeding brought pursuant to
this rule, to promote the fair and efficient operation of justice and having
given due regard to the rights of the affected individuals, the protection of
the public's health, and the availability of necessary witnesses and evidence,
the department or a court may order the consolidation of individual claims into
group claims, if all of the following conditions exist:
a. The number of individuals involved or who
may be affected is so large that individual participation is
impractical.
b. There are questions
of law or fact common to the individual claims or rights to be
determined.
c. The group claims or
rights to be determined are typical of the affected individuals' claims or
rights.
d. The entire group will be
adequately represented in the consolidation.
(8)
Implementation and enforcement of
area quarantine.
a.
Jurisdictional issues. The department has primary jurisdiction
to impose area quarantine if the quarantinable disease or hazardous or toxic
agent has affected more than one county and implicates multicounty or statewide
public health concerns. If area quarantine is imposed by the department, a
local board of health or local health department may not alter, amend, modify,
or rescind the area quarantine order
b.
Assistance of local boards of
health and local health departments. If area quarantine is imposed by
the department, the local boards of health and the local health departments in
the affected areas shall assist in the implementation of the area
quarantine.
c.
Assistance
of law enforcement. Pursuant to Iowa Code section
135.35,
all peace officers of the state shall enforce and execute a lawful department
order for area quarantine within their respective jurisdictions. The department
shall take all reasonable measures to minimize the risk of individual exposure
of peace officers and others assisting with enforcement of an area quarantine
order
d.
Emergency
response, investigation, and decontamination -
authority of
other agencies. Emergency response, investigation, and decontamination
activities in and around an area quarantine site shall be conducted by law
enforcement, fire service, emergency medical service providers, or other
appropriate federal, state, or local officials in accordance with federal and
state law and accepted procedures and protocols for emergency response,
investigation, and decontamination.
This rule shall not be construed to limit the authority of law
enforcement, fire service, emergency medical service providers, or other
federal, state, or local officials to conduct emergency response,
investigation, or decontamination activities to the extent authorized by
federal and state law and accepted procedures and protocols.
e.
Penalty. Pursuant to
Iowa Code section
135.38, any individual
who knowingly violates a lawful department order for area quarantine, whether
written or oral, shall be guilty of a simple misdemeanor The court-ordered
sentence may include a fine of up to $500 and imprisonment not to exceed 30
days.
f.
Enforcement
action. To enforce a department order for quarantine, the department
may file a civil action in Polk County District Court or in the district court
for the county in which the area quarantine will be enforced. Such action shall
be filed in accordance with the Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure.