The fate of an expansion of isolation and quarantine rules in New York state is now in the hands of five Fourth Department, Appellate Division judges.
Oral arguments were heard Wednesday in Rochester in the state’s appeal of a state Supreme Court decision by Judge Ronald Ploetz in Cattaraugus County invalidating the state Health Department’s administrative rulemaking that would expand the state’s power to isolate and quarantine state residents or clarify existing procedures, depending on which side of the argument one falls into. Jonathan Hitsous argued the state’s appeal of Ploetz’s order while Bobbie Flower Cox argued on behalf of state Sen. George Borrello, Assemblyman Michael Lawler, Assemblyman Chris Tague and Uniting NYS LLC.
The bulk of the judges’ questions during the roughly 25-minute oral argument focused on whether or not the Health Department had authority under existing state law to expand its isolation and quarantine authority. Both Judge Tracey Bannister and John Curran asked about the state’s statutory authority, with Curran asking both attorneys to elaborate on that argument specifically.
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