US Tightens Ebola Precautions Amid DR Congo Outbreak

The United States has announced stricter public health measures to curb the spread of Ebola, including enhanced airport screening for travellers arriving from affected regions and temporary restrictions on visa services in some locations.

The measures, introduced by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), follow the World Health Organization’s declaration of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as a global health emergency.

Speaking at a briefing, CDC Ebola response incident manager, Satish Pillai, confirmed that an American working in the DRC had tested positive for the virus after exposure linked to their duties in the country.

“The person developed symptoms over the weekend and tested positive late Sunday,” Pillai said, adding that arrangements were underway to transfer the patient to Germany for treatment.

He also disclosed that US authorities were coordinating the evacuation of six additional individuals for health monitoring.

According to him, about 25 CDC personnel are currently stationed at the agency’s field office in the DRC, while preparations are ongoing to deploy a senior technical coordinator to strengthen the response effort.

“At this time, CDC assesses the immediate risk to the general US public as low, but we will continue to evaluate the evolving situation and may adjust public health measures as additional information becomes available,” the agency said.

As part of the new precautions, the CDC also announced entry restrictions for non-US passport holders who have travelled to Uganda, the DRC, or South Sudan within the past 21 days.

In addition, the US Embassy in Kampala said it had temporarily suspended visa services, noting that affected applicants had already been notified.

US President Donald Trump said he was “concerned” about the outbreak but stressed that it was currently “confined right now to Africa.”