FRIDAY, Oct. 7, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Travelers flying from Uganda will be funneled to one of five U.S. airports so they can be screened for Ebola amid an outbreak in that African country, federal officials announced Thursday.
Passengers who have been in Uganda within the previous 21 days will fly to Kennedy Airport in New York, Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. No cases of Ebola have been reported outside Uganda at this time, but the Biden administration warned physicians to be watchful for any cases.
“While there are no direct flights from Uganda to the United States, travelers from or passing through affected areas in Uganda can enter the United States on flights connecting from other countries,” the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explained in its alert.
While the CDC ordered the airport screenings, the U.S. State Department said the screenings also apply to U.S. citizens who have been in Uganda. Screenings began on Thursday for some passengers. Travel restrictions start next week, The New York Times reported. Screenings will include a temperature check and a health questionnaire. Those will be shared with local officials.
In the Ugandan outbreak, the virus circulated widely before it was detected in the city of Mubende. It is now in four other districts within a 75-mile radius, with 44 confirmed cases and 10 deaths so far.
While there are vaccines and treatments for another strain of Ebola, the Zaire species, they do not work against the Sudan species that is circulating in Uganda, The Times reported.
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