Woman who avoided tuberculosis treatment for more than a year to be arrested [Video]

TACOMA, Wash. (KOMO) — A Washington state woman who has been avoiding treatment or isolation for tuberculosis for over a year will be arrested Friday and put into isolation for treatment unless she voluntarily complies.

On Feb. 24, the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department went before Judge Philip Sorenson for a 16th time in an attempt to get the woman to comply with the judge’s order that she either resume taking her medication or voluntarily isolate herself.

The woman was under an involuntary isolation order from Dec. 25, 2022, to Feb. 8, 2023. In the order, health officials said the woman started treatment. However, she left before treatment was complete.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the treatment process can take three to nine months. People who end treatment early can also develop antibiotic resistance.

The woman will now be arrested on Friday after Sorenson issued a civil warrant for her arrest. The health department said she will be taken to a specially-designated …