In picture: Texas male stripper Goode
Goode and a stripper pal, Taylor Cole, voluntarily pulled themselves out of circulation after the pair sat near an infected nurse on a Cleveland-to-Dallas flight. They vowed to stay in their homes for 21 days, a move suggested — but not required — by the CDC.
“It doesn’t take an intelligent person to make a good decision,” Goode, who comes from a family of pharmacists, told the Daily News. “If a stripper can make a decision that’s more responsible than the CDC, then surely other people can make those decisions, too. It’s not rocket science.”
Goode and Cole placed themselves in quarantine after learning they sat just an arm’s length from health care worker Amber Vinson on Monday’s flight. The men are feeling fine; neither has reported a fever.
Taylor Cole
CDC officials gave Vinson, 29, the go-ahead to fly despite her work treating doomed Ebola patient Thomas Duncan at a Dallas hospital. She was diagnosed this week with the often-fatal virus.
The hunky pair, who also work as models for romance novel covers, were astounded when federal officials didn’t impose any travel restrictions on them after the flight.
“I think the best medical solution out there is prevention,” Goode told The News. “Then you never have to treat it.”
The two models were among 132 passengers on Frontier Airline’s Flight 1142 from Cleveland to Dallas.
Vinson contracted the deadly virus while she treated Duncan — the first confirmed Ebola case on U.S. soil — at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital. Duncan died last week, and two of his nurses have since developed the disease.
Federal officials, who have been criticized because of their bungling of the Ebola crisis, urged all the passengers aboard the flight to call and check in Wednesday.
But when Goode dialed in around 11 a.m., he faced an 81-minute wait, he wrote on Facebook.
Instead of staying on hold, he elected to have health officials call him back. It took them an hour and 40 minutes to return his call.
When they did, they took down his contact address and phone number but didn’t give him any advice.
A day later, Dallas health officials called to suggest he voluntarily isolate himself by staying in his own home — a protective move he had already started.
“This is not only good for me, but for the greater public as well,” Goode said. “I’m taking a proactive approach to protecting people.”
The strippers were on the flight Monday after attending an Ohio conference for their publishing company, Ellora’s Cave.
The two were unaware they were flying with a soon-to-be diagnosed Ebola patient. Cole took a playful video during the flight showing him poking Goode while he slept.
While the CDC won’t say exactly which seat the Ebola-infected nurse was in, officials told the models that they were within three feet of her.
Once Goode learned he might have been exposed to the virus, he texted Cole. His pal was planning a trip to Houston that day, but Goode advised him to cancel.
“Definitely don’t go to Houston today. We’re going to have to take the next three weeks off work,” Goode told his friend.
An epidemiologist told Goode and Cole not to fly or get on board a cruise ship. And if they were living with someone else, to stay three feet away. They also needed to keep a journal and take their temperature twice daily.
Goode said he’ll spend the next three weeks locked inside his Dallas home.
Friends, family and a growing number of strangers have volunteered to ship him food and supplies for the duration of his self-imposed exile. Supporters have set up a fund to help him with his rent and bills, he said.
“I’m fortunate that I have such a good social network that is willing to help take care of me at this time,” he said. “It’s a small sacrifice.”
He likely won’t be bored: The published author said he might use the time to work on new books.
Cole is taking similar precautions, Goode said. His family came to visit — but dropped off food at the property line and never entered his home.
“We’re going to do what’s right for the people around us,” Goode said. “That’s our responsibility.”
The stripper said he was upbeat: “I’m just trying to stay positive.”
By Meg Wagner With Jason Molinet
New York Daily News
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