WASHINGTON, October 4 (RIA Novosti) – The US is not considering a travel ban to prevent any further cases of potential Ebola patients from coming into the country, White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters Friday.
"There's no consideration of a travel ban at this point," Earnest told reporters.
Earnest credited the US sophisticated screening protocols for traveling both domestically and in West African countries as the main reason why the country would not ban any travel.
"There has been clear communication and guidance that's been given to personnel that make up the transportation system," said Earnest. "Pilots, flight attendants, other security officials who are part of the transportation system have been trained and educated about what they should be looking for in terms of ensuring that the traveling public is safe."
The first case of Ebola virus infection inside the United States was confirmed on Sunday. The patient was identified as a Liberian citizen Thomas Eric Duncan. Another 50 people are currently at risk from exposure to the disease and are subject to monitoring by health authorities.
Another patient was confirmed at the Howard University Hospital, Washington, on Friday. The patient had been admitted and was being treated for Ebola-like symptoms after traveling from Nigeria. Several hours later a new potential case of Ebola was confirmed at the Shady Grove Adventist Hospital in Rockville, Maryland, just about 16 miles out of Washington.
The current Ebola epidemic broke out in Guinea, and spread across Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, and Senegal. According to the latest estimates by the World Health Organization, 3,439 of the total 7,200 cases of infection were lethal. Although no official medication for the disease has been created, Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Japan are working on a vaccine to cure it.
