The eternal dilemma
Public safety vs. personal rights.
It is scary, reading the proposed law, for the potential civil rights abuses it contains. But, understand that if we have a major outbreak of a deadly disease (read pandemic, as the word plague is no longer in vogue), these kinds of measures will be taken. And they will be justified, and legal. Abuses will happen. People will suffer needlessly. Don't kid yourself. It can happen here.
And the justification is actually rational. The Constitution, and the laws of our land are not a suicide pact. Individual rights will be trampled and ignored by frightened people in and out of goverment. Expect it, if we have an actual plague.
The thing we need to guard against, is the overzealous declaration of plague/pandemic, by the health community, triggering the extreme reaction of govenment, for the public good.
Too many people will be too quick to claim the end is here, and these measures must be taken. And, while, if the projected scenario does occur, these measures will need to be taken, we must determine, in advance where the trigger level is.
A few deaths? A few hundred? Or do we wait for a few thousand? Knowing that a few thousand can turn into a few hundred thousand nearly overnight, if extreme measures are not taken in time?
We are a nation of over 300 million people. What level of infection, what level of mortailty should be the limit where we push the panic button?
And, are doctors, or medical bureaucrats the ones to decide? Or political appointees? No easy answers, but the time to ask the questions is now, not when response is needed. If we wait till then, it will be too late.