DALLAS (CN) - Weighing public fears of Ebola and civil liberties, the Dallas County Commissioners Court on Thursday declined to declare a local emergency or impose control orders on health care workers who cared for the late Thomas Eric Duncan.
With approval of Gov. Rick Perry, such a declaration would give Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins and Mayor Mike Rawlings authority to control access to the disaster area and the movements of the area's occupants.
Calls for such a declaration have grown from the public as two of Duncan's nurses have tested positive for Ebola.
During a special meeting Thursday afternoon, Commissioner John Wiley Price said such a declaration "may or may not accomplish what we expect" due to "other issues looming."
"We need to probably move cautiously with this declaration," Price said. "It is in our toolbox, but I'm not sure if it is prudent."
Jenkins said a declaration would allow Perry to set up a district disaster center, but one is already up and running in Garland.
"Things that have been needed, like control orders, those are things we've been able to work out with health workers to keep them from travelling," Jenkins said. "There is no need to use extraordinary powers."
Jenkins said there is "nothing in a declaration" that would help him, and that Perry feels the same way.
"It's a very serious situation but we need to keep it in our toolbox," Jenkins said. "Because there is a very good working relationship with federal, state and local authorities, we don't feel like we need it at this time."
Jenkins said that instead of placing control orders on the 75 medical contacts at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas where Duncan was treated, the contacts will enter into voluntary agreements with Dr. David Lakey, commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Under the terms of the voluntary agreements , the Presbyterian Hospital contacts who directly cared for Duncan agree to twice-a-day monitoring, including temperature checks, with at least one of the sessions being a face-to-face encounter.
"No individual health care worker who entered the first Ebola patient's room can go to any location where members of the public congregate which includes but is not limited to restaurants, grocery stores, theaters or other places where the public may be in attendance or gather, throughout the entire 21 day time period that follows the individual's last exposure," the agreement states. "Any health care worker that does not adhere to monitoring or any of these other measures may be subject to a communicable disease control order."
The Presbyterian Hospital contacts also agree to not go on long-distance trips on airplanes, ships, long-distance buses or trains.
"Local use of public transportation (e.g. taxi, bus) by asymptomatic individuals should be discussed with the public health authority," the agreement states.
"These documents are an agreement between [the Presbyterian Hospital contacts] and Lackey, to stay away from places people congregate - which they are happy to do - and stay away from public transportation," Jenkins said.
Calls for court-imposed orders have grown after it was revealed that nurse Amber Vinson flew from Cleveland back to Dallas on Frontier Airlines Flight 1143 on Monday morning - one day before she reported to Presbyterian with a fever and was isolated .
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