California TB patient arrested for refusing care. Eduardo Rosas Cruz, a tuberculosis patient from the San Joaquin General Hospital in California, was arrested after fleeing doctors who wanted to give him medications. The Mexican was diagnosed with TB in March, after seeking medical care for a severe cough. The tuberculosis-infected man, is from a town where several people, contracted a drug-resistant strain of tuberculosis.
Eduardo Rosas Cruz, the man who refused to take medications, after doctors discovered he tested positive for tuberculosis has been arrested.
Back in March, the 25-year-old man, who is believed to be a crack cocaine and pain killers addict was rushed into the ER of the San Joaquin General Hospital in French Camp, California after complaining of severe cough, high fever, drastic weight loss and shortness of breath.
Doctors performed TB skin test on Cruz, which revealed that he was indeed suffering from tuberculosis, but instead of calling County health officials on the spot, the man was asked to stay at the nearby Stockton motel and wait for his drugs.
When the County’s medical staff arrived at the Stockton motel, the tuberculosis patient was nowhere to be found.
A warrant was issued for the TB patient’s arrest, after it was deemed that Cruz was a potential health risk to the community due to fact that he was not being treated for the disease and was from an area in Mexico where many were infected with a drug-resistant strain of TB.
TB mainly affects the lungs and can become deadly if not treated. On Monday afternoon, the sick individual was arrested near Bakersfield during a traffic stop.
Authorities from the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, brought him to the Kern Medical Center in Bakersfield, where he is currently under Dr. Kenneth Bird’s care.
Bird, who is the county’s interim health officer revealed, that the homeless man will get a chest X-ray in order to know if the infection has turned into the contagious disease.
Despite the fact of facing jail time for violating health orders, Cruz is still refusing to be examined by Dr. Bird.
If after one week, officers are unable to get the Mexican man to take his medications, he will see a judge who, will determine his punishment.
