Ritze Calls For Immigrant Quanartine

Ritze calling for quarantine of illegal immigrants at Fort Sill
by Lesa Jones

OKLAHOMA CITY – State Rep. Mike Ritze (Republican-Broken Arrow) said today he has sent letters to Gov. Mary Fallin, Attorney General Scott Pruitt, Oklahoma Commissioner of Health Terry Cline and state representatives in the Lawton area encouraging them to do all they can to ensure the protection of Oklahoma citizens from contagious diseases following the federal government’s decision to house illegal immigrant children at Ft. Sill.

“More than 1,100 unaccompanied minors who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border illegally are currently being housed at Fort Sill,” said Ritze, R-Broken Arrow. “As a physician, the chairman of Public Safety A&B, and a citizen of Oklahoma, I am concerned about the possibility of communicable diseases being carried by a population that does not have the same vaccination requirements as in the U.S.”

Ritze is a board certified physician and surgeon with a master’s degree in forensic science administration. Recently, he observed three cases of illegal immigrants having tuberculosis. Additionally, the Arkansas Department of Health reported leprosy in patients who were illegal immigrants in Northwest Arkansas. The Oklahoma State Department of Health has reported cases of syphilis in Northeast Oklahoma in patients who are illegal immigrants.

Pursuant to the Oklahoma Administrative Code 310:521-703(b), his letters request that the illegal immigrants at Fort Sill be quarantined. Pursuant to the Catastrophic Health Emergency Powers Act, his letter also requests that the governor declare a state of catastrophic health emergency until it can be proven that the minors do not carry communicable diseases.

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