U.S. health officials issued a travel warning
Thursday for three West African nations as the
death toll soared from an Ebola outbreak,
while Obama administration officials
downplayed the possibility that travelers could
bring the virus to a U.S.-Africa summit
President Obama will attend in Washington next
week.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
announced an advisory against “non-essential”
travel to Liberia , Guinea and Sierra Leone ,
where the deadly disease has claimed the lives
of at least 729 people and infected more than
1,300. The last time the federal agency issued
such a travel warning was in 2003, during the
SARS outbreak in Asia.
“Ebola is worsening in West Africa,” said CDC
Director Thomas Frieden. He said the agency is
sending 50 additional staff to West Africa to
advise countries on controlling the disease.
International health organizations describe the
Ebola epidemic as out of control, and say it
could take up to six months to suppress. There
is no known cure or vaccine for the virus.
The head of the World Health Organization and
the leaders of the three West African nations
are expected to announce a $100 million
response plan and will meet on Friday to
launch the initiative.
The crisis caused Sierra Leone President Ernest
Bai Koroma to declare a health emergency and
to cancel his trip to Washington to attend next
week’s summit, which begins Monday. The
leaders of Liberia and Guinea also reportedly
are canceling their plans to attend the
conference.
“ Sierra Leone is in a great fight. … Failure is not
an option,” Mr. Koroma told his nation in a
televised address.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest said
Mr. Obama has no plans “at this point” to alter
or cancel the summit schedule. The White
House is billing the conference as the largest
gathering of African leaders ever in Washington ,
including some representatives from the
nations where the contagion is spreading.
Mr. Earnest said the CDC has determined there
is “no significant risk in the United States” from
the Ebola outbreak.
The U.S. also is considering evacuating two
American aid workers diagnosed with Ebola
back to the U.S. for treatment.
While the administration is advising Americans
not to travel to West Africa, there are no
restrictions against people traveling to the U.S.
from the countries where the outbreak is
occurring. Rep. Alan Grayson, Florida Democrat,
has asked the administration to restrict travel
into the country from anyone who lives or has
recently visited the three countries suffering
from the breakout.
Mr. Grayson, a member of the House Foreign
Affairs Committee, wants the State Department
to ban citizens of Guinea , Liberia and Sierra
Leone from entering the U.S., including any
travelers who have visited those countries in
the past 90 days.
A spokeswoman for Mr. Grayson said Thursday
that the administration had not responded to
his request.
While officials are downplaying the possibility of
the virus arriving in the U.S., others point to
the case of Patrick Sawyer, a 40-year-old U.S.
citizen who died from Ebola July 25 in Nigeria.
Mr. Sawyer had been scheduled to fly to
Minneapolis in mid-August to celebrate his
daughter’s birthday.
Ebola’s flu-like symptoms appear abruptly after
an incubation period of two to 21 days. Victims,
who may experience severe internal and
external bleeding, usually die from shock or
organ failure within one to two weeks. Ebola
spreads in human populations through direct
contact with blood and other bodily fluid of an
infected person; experts say it cannot be
spread by sneezing or coughing.
Mr. Earnest said the CDC is alerting health care
workers in the U.S. and reminding them how to
isolate and deal with cases of Ebola, although
the agency has determined it’s unlikely Ebola
would spread if detected in the U.S.
Mr. Koroma said in a statement online
that Sierra Leone is implementing measures
aimed at tackling the Ebola virus, including
quarantines and a ban on most public
meetings.
“Fellow citizens, this is a national fight, and it
behooves all of us to stand together to
promote the truth about this deadly
disease,” Mr. Koroma said. “Ebola is real, and
we must stop its transmission.”
On Wednesday, the Peace Corps announced it
was pulling all 340 volunteers from Sierra
Leone , Guinea and Liberia in response to the
outbreak of the highly contagious disease,
which kills up to 90 percent of those infected.
Source: washingtontimes.com
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