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Ebola screening begins at US airports Ebola screening begins at US airports
(35 minutes later)
Travellers from Ebola-affected countries will face increased security scrutiny at five major US airports.Travellers from Ebola-affected countries will face increased security scrutiny at five major US airports.
Passengers from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea will have their temperatures taken and have to answer questions.Passengers from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea will have their temperatures taken and have to answer questions.
The deadly Ebola outbreak has already killed more than 3,000 people infected more than 7,200, mostly in West Africa.The deadly Ebola outbreak has already killed more than 3,000 people infected more than 7,200, mostly in West Africa.
The new measures at O'Hare in Chicago, JFK and Newark in the New York area, Washington's Dulles, and Atlanta's airport could begin this weekend.The new measures at O'Hare in Chicago, JFK and Newark in the New York area, Washington's Dulles, and Atlanta's airport could begin this weekend.
Customs and Border Protection will dispatch staff to these five airports, which account for 90% of travellers to the US, with 160 people coming from these countries each day. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will dispatch staff to these five airports, which account for 90% of travellers to the US. As many as 160 people enter the US from those countries each day.
Travellers will also be given a questionnaire, and if they answer yes to any questions or are running a fever, a representative of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will intervene. 'Additional layer'
Travellers will be given a questionnaire, and if they answer yes to any questions or are running a fever, a representative of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will intervene and provide a public health assessment.
Factsheets will be distributed to travellers with information on symptoms of Ebola and instructions to call a doctor if they become ill within three weeks.Factsheets will be distributed to travellers with information on symptoms of Ebola and instructions to call a doctor if they become ill within three weeks.
The new security measures will "give us the ability to isolate, evaluate and monitor travellers as needed, and we'll be able to collect any contact information that's necessary", US President Barack Obama said on Wednesday.
"If we don't follow protocols and procedures that are put in place, then we're putting folks in our communities at risk," he added. "We don't have a lot of margin for error."
Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson described the measures as "an additional layer of protection to help ensure the risk of Ebola in the United States is minimised."
And CDC director Dr Tom Frieden said, "We believe these new measures will further protect the health of Americans, understanding that nothing we can do will get us to absolute zero risk until we end the Ebola epidemic in West Africa."
More than 3,400 people have already died in West Africa, and on Monday, Liberian national Thomas Eric Duncan became the first person to die of the disease in the US. He was also the first person diagnosed with the disease outside of Africa.More than 3,400 people have already died in West Africa, and on Monday, Liberian national Thomas Eric Duncan became the first person to die of the disease in the US. He was also the first person diagnosed with the disease outside of Africa.
The first case of contagion outside that continent was also confirmed in Spain on Monday, where a nurse who treated an Ebola victim in Madrid contracted the virus herself.The first case of contagion outside that continent was also confirmed in Spain on Monday, where a nurse who treated an Ebola victim in Madrid contracted the virus herself.
Mr Obama, who spoke after a White House briefing with US health officials, said the US government would push to ensure doctors and other medical professionals responded appropriately if they came in contact with a patient with Ebola-like symptoms.
"We're also going to be working on protocols to do additional passenger screening both at the source and here in the United States," he said.
The US president also criticised foreign governments for not acting "as aggressively as they need to" against the outbreak.
"Countries that think that they can sit on the sidelines and just let the United States do it, that will result in a less effective response, a less speedy response, and that means that people die.
"And it also means that the potential spread of the disease beyond these areas in West Africa becomes more imminent," Mr Obama said.
Passengers leaving affected countries already have their temperatures checked, but people do not become infectious until they display symptoms.Passengers leaving affected countries already have their temperatures checked, but people do not become infectious until they display symptoms.
Mr Duncan was screened for symptoms when he left Liberia but appeared healthy. He did not develop symptoms of Ebola until four days later, when he was in the US.Mr Duncan was screened for symptoms when he left Liberia but appeared healthy. He did not develop symptoms of Ebola until four days later, when he was in the US.
Ten people who came into direct contact with him are being closely monitored but none has yet displayed any Ebola symptoms. Ten people who came into direct contact with him are being closely monitored but none have yet displayed any Ebola symptoms.
Dr Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has ruled out banning flights to the US, arguing the isolation would only worsen the outbreak within Africa and would deny those countries crucial aid. Dr Frieden has ruled out banning flights to the US from the affected countries, arguing the isolation would only worsen the outbreak within Africa and would deny those countries crucial aid.