The Nation - News from June 2, 1987

The Texas House and Senate voted to allow officials to quarantine AIDS patients who pose a threat to public health, but rejected a requirement that couples take an AIDS test for a marriage license. The bill, which goes to Gov. Bill Clements, makes AIDS a communicable disease under state law, allowing public health officials to ask a judge to quarantine an AIDS patient who acts irresponsibly and spreads the disease. The bill allows--but does not require--the Texas Department of Corrections to test new inmates for the virus. The bill also requires health officials to notify emergency medical workers when they have had contact with a patient with AIDS.