Cruise passenger from deadly hantavirus outbreak says she's 'held hostage' in quarantine fight

A passenger from a cruise that experienced a deadly hantavirus outbreak has drawn widespread attention after claiming she is being forced to remain in quarantine.

According to a report from Today, Angela Perryman, 47, said a dispute involving Florida officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has left her confined at a federal facility — a situation she says makes her feel "held hostage."

What happened?

Perryman had been traveling aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius, which departed Argentina in April before a rare outbreak of the Andes strain of hantavirus swept through the vessel, ultimately killing three passengers.

Today reported that 18 Americans from the ship returned to the United States from the Canary Islands on May 11 and were then quarantined in the National Quarantine Center in Omaha, Nebraska, because the virus can incubate for up to six weeks.

Although she said in a Today video segment that she has remained symptom-free and has not tested positive, Perryman said she still has not been permitted to go back to Florida to finish isolating there.

"I don't think there has been a day since I've been here that I didn't cry," she said, describing the conditions as like "prison" and "solitary confinement."

According to Perryman, Florida health officials are resisting CDC guidance that calls for quarantined individuals to receive twice-daily, in-person temperature checks from public health workers or law-enforcement personnel stationed outside their homes.

"When they told me I was here voluntarily, I believed them," she said. "They insisted up until the day that I asked to leave, it had been completely voluntary, but the moment I said I want to leave, it was no longer voluntary. I feel like I was lied to."

Why does it matter?

The Andes strain is especially concerning because, unlike most hantavirus strains linked to rodent exposure, it can spread from person to person, Today noted.

Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph A. Ladapo argued that the CDC's round-the-clock surveillance and in-person monitoring guidelines are "not necessary," saying Florida's approach is guided by "science, risk assessment, and respect for individual liberty."

Perryman said she even rented a private Airbnb in Florida to isolate herself. "If I am alone in a house, there is absolutely no way that somebody else can get this," she said.

However, despite Perryman's efforts, Today noted that her attorneys said finding a resolution before the quarantine period ends is unlikely. 

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