Story highlights
Chris Christie brushed off questions about a potential lawsuit over his handling of Ebola
The legal challenge could come from a nurse who was quarantined over the weekend
She argued her isolation was a violation of her rights
But Christie said she had access to the Internet and takeout food
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a former U.S. attorney, said he had no qualms about a possible lawsuit from the recently quarantined nurse in his state.
Campaigning Tuesday in Rhode Island for GOP gubernatorial nominee Allan Fung, the straight-talking Republican also hit back at criticism that the nurse wasn’t treated well enough, arguing she even had internet access and takeout food.
“Whatever,” he said, when pressed by reporters about a potential legal challenge. “Get in line. I’ve been sued lots of times before. Get in line. I’m happy to take it on.”
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Kaci Hickox, a health care worker who returned last week from helping Ebola victims in Sierra Leone, was isolated over the weekend in a tent inside a Newark hospital.
Saying she was not symptomatic, she strongly protested the quarantine, hiring legal counsel and drawing the national spotlight to what she described as a violation against her rights.
She was released and sent to Maine on Monday. Attorneys for Hickox have raised the possibility of challenging New Jersey’s quarantine policy in court.
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Facing questions over the condition of tent, Christie said he had no concerns about how she was treated.
“Neither did the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], who was on the ground in University Hospital monitoring the conditions she was in. She had access to the internet and we brought her takeout food.”
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Christie understood why she felt inconvenienced, he said, but argued she had a fever at one point and he did what was right for the general public.
“There’s been all kinds of malarkey … about this. She was inside the hospital in a climate-controlled area with access to her cell phone, access to the internet, and takeout food from the best restaurants in Newark. She was doing just fine.”