What if someone gets Covid 19 and refuses to self isolate?

sexmag wrote: »

What are the laws regarding someone who is diagnosed with Covid 19 and they refuse to self isolate for 2 weeks?

Can they be arrested,charged etc for public endangerment?

If you are actually infected with Covid-19 the recommended course is not self-isolation, but self-quarantine (unless you are so ill as to require hospitalisation, in which case the hospital will handle the quarantining, naturally).

If you won't do this voluntarily, it can be done forcibly, under provisions in the Health Act 1947, on the authority of the Chief Medical Officer or one of his deputies.

Dav010 links to a report which talks about powers the guards have under emergency powers legislation. SFAIK these powers only apply if and when a state of emergency has been declared, which hasn't happened yet. If it gets to that point, the guards would have power, e.g., to seal off an area and impose quarantine/isolation measures on everyone in it, as is happening right now in parts of Italy. These are powers which could be invoked against people who are not known to be infected, but are thought to be a risk of being infected, and therefore infectious.