The United States is intensifying efforts to prevent Ebola cases from reaching the country as the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo continues to worsen, prompting new travel restrictions, airport screenings and discussions over overseas quarantine facilities.
The outbreak, caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, has already resulted in a suspected 220 deaths and around 900 cases. The World Health Organization has declared it the third-largest Ebola outbreak on record and designated it a public health emergency of international concern.
Speaking during President Donald Trump’s cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the administration’s priority was to stop the virus from entering the United States.
“We cannot and will not allow any cases of Ebola to enter the United States,” Rubio said.
New Strategy Marks Shift From 2014 Response
The current U.S. response differs significantly from the approach taken during the 2014 Ebola outbreak, when infected Americans were treated inside the United States at specialized infectious disease centers.
This time, the administration is focusing on containing the outbreak within the affected region and limiting the movement of potentially exposed individuals into the country.
According to two U.S. officials cited by Reuters, Washington is in discussions with Kenya about establishing a quarantine facility for American citizens exposed to Ebola. Kenyan authorities have not yet approved the proposal.
Experts Raise Questions Over Overseas Quarantine Plan
Some public health experts have expressed concerns about the idea of creating a new quarantine and treatment facility abroad.
Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, argued that patients would likely receive better care at existing high-containment infectious disease centers in the United States or Germany.
“I can’t imagine that you can build a facility de novo in Kenya to have that same standard that we already have in these NETEC centers,” Adalja said.
He noted that specialized facilities in the U.S. are already equipped to manage complex Ebola cases, including advanced treatments such as dialysis and mechanical ventilation.
Adalja also warned that the policy could discourage medical professionals from volunteering in outbreak zones if they feared they would not be allowed to return home for treatment.
Travel Restrictions and Airport Screening Expanded
The United States has already introduced stricter entry measures related to the outbreak.
Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention imposed 30-day entry restrictions on travelers who had recently been in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda or South Sudan. The restrictions apply even to lawful permanent residents, commonly known as Green Card holders.
The CDC has also expanded screening procedures for Americans arriving from affected countries at three U.S. airports. Agency staff have been asked to volunteer for urgent deployment to support screening operations at entry points.
Health experts, however, have questioned the effectiveness of airport screening in fully preventing the spread of infectious diseases.
American Missionary Treated Abroad
The debate over the administration’s response intensified after a U.S. medical missionary working in Congo contacted Ebola while treating patients.
The infected American was transferred to Germany for treatment along with five people who had been exposed to the virus. A seventh exposed individual was taken to the Czech Republic.
According to a report by The Washington Post, the White House resisted allowing the missionary to return directly to the United States, which reportedly delayed evacuation and treatment efforts.
US Says It Is Supporting Containment Efforts
Despite the strict entry measures, Rubio said the United States continues to increase assistance to help contain the outbreak in Central Africa.
U.S. officials have stated that a senior CDC official was deployed to the region and that millions of dollars in support funding have been committed to the response effort.
Chris Meekins, a former health official during Trump’s first administration, said the government appeared to be searching for alternatives to bringing exposed individuals back to the U.S., partly because of concerns about limited treatment capacity.
“What they’re doing here is trying to find options that don’t require bringing people back to the U.S. if they can,” Meekins said.
