Tuberculosis patient in Washington who was arrested for refusing treatment is finally cured

A Washington state woman who was arrested after she refused for more than a year to consistently isolate or take medication for tuberculosis has finally been cured of the disease.

The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department said Monday that the woman had tested negative for tuberculosis multiple times and had given officials permission to share an update on her health. 

“Because this situation led to a lot of media coverage and discussion in the community, the patient and her family wanted to share the ending of the story,” the Health Department said in a statement.

Indeed, the case drew national attention as authorities pursued months of legal action to prevent the woman from potentially infecting others. Authorities even enlisted her family to persuade her to accept treatment.

“She gained back weight she’d lost and is healthy again,” the Health Department said in its statement, adding that the woman and her family are “happy she got the help she needed.”

Tuberculosis, which is caused by bacteria that attack the lungs or other parts of the body, can spread through the air when a person with an active case coughs, sneezes or speaks. 

Up to 13 million people in the U.S. have latent infections, meaning they aren’t contagious and don’t have symptoms. But around 5% to 10% of latent cases develop into active disease if they’re left untreated. 

Treatment for tuberculosis usually consists of antibiotics taken daily or weekly for a period of months. During that time, people with active disease must be isolated until they’re no longer infectious. 

The Health Department requested a court order in January 2022 to require the woman — identified in court papers by the initials V.N. — to comply with treatment and isolation protocols. Washington state law gives public health officials the legal authority to seek a court order when a person’s refusal to isolate or take medication for tuberculosis threatens public safety.

Over the next year, health officials got more court orders to compel the patient to stay home, but she continued to violate them. 

One such violation came to light in a petition the Health Department filed in January 2023. It said V.N. had been a passenger in a car accident and went to the emergency room for chest pain the next day. But she didn’t alert hospital staff members to her tuberculosis infection. X-rays at the ER showed that her tuberculosis was getting worse and that she had also contracted Covid-19.

By February 2023, the Health Department had been to court 16 times to address her noncompliance. A judge then found V.N. in civil contempt and signed a warrant for her arrest — a measure health officials saw as a last resort. 

She wasn’t arrested right away, however: In April 2023, V.N. was seen boarding a bus to a casino. 

According to a March 2023 filing from the Health Department, the patient’s court-appointed attorney suggested that her client didn’t understand the threat she posed to the community.

However, the department said V.N. had knowingly and willingly violated the court’s orders, adding that she received copies of the orders in English and her native language and that an interpreter had been present at every hearing. 

“The only viable course of action to protect public health is to require Respondent to undergo treatment at the Pierce County Jail,” the department wrote. 

Officers took her to jail in June 2023. She was held in a “negative pressure” room, which prevents contaminated air from flowing outside.

“At that point, she realized how serious her situation was and decided to treat her illness,” the Health Department said Monday. “With her family’s help, our disease investigators earned her trust. She began to take her medication and regained her health over time.”

Later that month, the judge released V.N. from jail under the condition that she isolate at home with court supervision. By July 2023, she had started to test negative for tuberculosis and was allowed to end isolation. 

Her case marked the third time in 20 years the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department had sought a court order to detain someone who refused tuberculosis treatment.

The department said Monday that some patients avoid treatment because of its side effects, the lengthy course and the fact that “it’s not always easy and affordable to isolate.”

Nationally, tuberculosis case numbers have risen since 2020 after 27 years of decline. Disease experts largely attribute the trend to reduced access to medical care during the pandemic, which may have delayed diagnoses.

No new cases have been connected to the woman, said Kenny Via, the Health Department’s media relations manager.

“This was a very unique case,” he said. “We’re happy with where we’ve ended it and where we’re at now. It was a long process to get to this place.”