As used in this chapter: 1. "Appropriate facility" includes a licensed hospital, a public or private outpatient clinic, a long-term care facility, a correctional facility, or an individual's home, and may also include directly observed therapy under the supervision of the department. 2. "Department" means the department of health and human services, including local public health units. 3. "Infectious tuberculosis" means tuberculosis disease in any part of the body, capable of producing infection or disease in others as demonstrated by laboratory evidence of tuberculosis bacteria in a specimen from any source in an individual's body or by radiographic or clinical findings. 4. "Medically approved course of treatment" means ongoing monitoring for a disease, treatment regimen, or therapy prescribed by a licensed physician and approved by the department. 5. "Noninfectious tuberculosis" or "latent TB infection" means the presence of tuberculosis bacteria in the body of an individual as evidenced by testing, such as significant reaction to a tuberculin skin test or a positive interferon gamma release assay, but without any other clinical findings of illness and without the capability of producing infection or disease in others. 6. "Substantial threat to the public health" means an individual with infectious or suspect tuberculosis who has not completed a medically approved course of therapy and does not adhere or threatens to not adhere to a recommended treatment regimen or does not adhere or threatens to not adhere to infection control measures. 7. "Suspect tuberculosis" means an illness marked by symptoms and laboratory tests that may be indicative of tuberculosis, such as a prolonged cough, prolonged fever, hemoptysis, compatible roentgenographic findings, or other appropriate medical imaging findings. 8. "Tuberculosis" includes infectious tuberculosis, suspect tuberculosis, noninfectious tuberculosis, and any other case in which an individual is found to have tuberculosis based upon laboratory testing, clinical evidence, or as diagnosed by a physician, the department, or a local health officer.
23-07.1-02. Care and treatment of tuberculosis patients or suspects provided without charge by state. Care and treatment provided by the state of North Dakota for persons suffering from tuberculosis, including diagnosis, tests, studies, and analyses for the discovery of tuberculosis, must be available without cost or charge to anyone who is suffering from tuberculosis or is suspected of having tuberculosis. Any such person who volunteers to assume and pay for the cost of such care and treatment or for the cost of such diagnosis, test, studies, or analyses must be permitted to do so; but no state, county, or other public official may request or require such payment or make or cause to be made any inquiry or investigation for the purpose of determining the ability of such person or of the person's legally responsible relatives to pay therefor. This section in no way bars freedom of the individual to seek treatment from a physician or in an institution of the individual's choice at the individual's own expense.