Ebola outbreak: Trump admin prepares quarantine facility in Kenya for Americans exposed to virus | Today’s news
Amid the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, President Donald Trump’s administration is preparing a quarantine facility in Congo for Americans who have been exposed to the virus, an official said Wednesday (local time).
NBC News said the decision to send the Americans away is a departure from previous Ebola outbreaks, which often involved flying Americans exposed to the virus back to Washington for quarantine or treatment.
Lawrence Gostin, director of the World Health Organization’s Collaborating Center for National and Global Health Law, said the decision to quarantine Americans in Kenya was “unprecedented.”
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Gostin wrote in an email: “This will likely cost American lives. We have an ethical obligation to protect US citizens, especially the brave medical and humanitarian workers who cared for Ebola patients. It is impossible to provide high-quality care to Ebola patients in Kenya compared to our state-of-the-art facilities in the US.”
During a cabinet meeting Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the administration’s top priority was protecting people, adding, “We cannot and will not allow any cases of Ebola to enter the United States.”
US quarantine facility in Kenya
The goal of the Kenyan quarantine facility is to give Americans faster access to care and avoid lengthy medical evacuation flights that can take more than 12 hours, the official said.
The official said the facility, created by a joint effort involving the departments of State, Defense and Health and Human Services, would be able to treat the “full spectrum” of Ebola cases, including patients requiring intensive or critical care.
The official added that patients who need more specialized treatment may be transferred to other facilities on a case-by-case basis.
“Time is of the essence for Ebola patients, and this facility will allow Americans in the region who contract Ebola to receive life-saving care as quickly as possible,” the official said.
Read also | Canada has imposed a travel ban on people from Congo, Uganda and Sudan because of Ebola
The Trump admin evacuated Americans from the region
The Trump administration has reportedly begun evacuating Americans from the region. Earlier this month, American doctor Peter Stafford, who contracted Ebola in the Congo, was flown to a hospital in Germany, while his wife and four children were sent to the Czech Republic for monitoring, along with another doctor, Patrick LaRochelle. Stafford, who at one point could barely stand and developed symptoms including chills and fever, is optimistic he will recover, according to a statement issued last week by Serge, the Christian missionary organization where he works.
The CDC blocks entry to the US for non-US citizens
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also banned citizens of other countries from entering the country if they have traveled to Congo, Uganda or South Sudan in the past 21 days. US citizens are exempt from this restriction, but are directed to designated airports for additional medical screening.
Ebola outbreak
According to the World Health Organizationzation (WHO), the Ebola epidemic in the Congo has worsened rapidly, with the number of cases climbing to more than 1,000 and the death toll exceeding 200.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak in Ituri province is spreading in an environment where insecurity, attacks on health facilities and population movements have made it “almost impossible” to trace contacts and isolate cases.
The Bundibugyo strain of Ebola virus, which was first identified in Uganda in 2007, has no approved vaccine or treatment. The WHO has warned that the outbreak continues to expand geographically, with signs of continued cross-border transmission.
According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the outbreak is primarily concentrated in Ituri province, but has spread to 11 health zones. Cases have also been identified in North Kivu, including Butemba and Goma, as well as in South Kivu.
Read also | Green card holders who have traveled to Ebola-affected areas are now unable to return to the US
Health authorities have said the virus is transmitted in families and health care facilities, with infections linked to caregiving, family events and unsafe burial practices.
Key things
- The US is changing its approach to Ebola quarantine, choosing a facility in Kenya instead of returning individuals to the US
- Experts are raising concerns about the adequacy of care for potentially life-threatening Ebola patients in Kenya.
- The situation highlights the complexity of managing health crises in conflict-affected areas.
