Aziza Ahmed, a law professor at Northeastern and member of the WGSS executive committee, was quoted in the Northeastern News in an article entitled “If you test positive for the Coronavirus, who has the right to know?”
Ahmed discusses that while we may have a moral responsibility to disclose our diagnoses to others before coming in contact with them, this is very different than a legal responsibility. Ahmed cites that many states passed laws during the AIDS crisis requiring those who know they have HIV to disclose this to sexual partners. But, she continues, the transmission of the virus that causes AIDs is much harder to transmit than the virus that causes COVID-19, which makes holding a single person accountable for the spread of COVID-19 much more difficult.
Ahmed also discusses the complications of attempting to halt the spread of the Coronavirus and protect those who have been in contact with someone who has tested positive, while also maintaining medical privacy, which creates a difficult situation to navigate.
