Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday has announced new travel measures for those coming to the United States from countries that have been affected by an Ebola outbreak.
Starting next week, passengers traveling from Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo will be redirected to six US airports so that the CDC can follow and follow them.
“Airlines will collect and transmit passenger information to the CDC for public health tracking and intervention for all passengers boarding a flight to the United States who have been in the DRC or Guinea in the past 21 days, ”the announcement reads.
Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo have experienced multiple outbreaks of Ebola over the years, with previous outbreaks killing thousands.
The United States has not seen an Ebola case since 2015 and officials have said they do not believe the latest outbreak is a threat to the country.
For Ebola to spread, a person must have direct contact with blood or body fluids from a person who has the virus. As long as a person does not travel to an outbreak area, the CDC says it is a low risk for a person to receive the virus.
However, as a precaution, the CDC said passengers in the two countries currently facing outbreaks will have their contact information verified and distributed to state and local health authorities.
The agency issued level three health warnings this week Guinea and Democratic Republic of the Congo, which means that there should be no non-essential travel to countries.
The Ebola outbreak in Guinea began in mid-February in a rural area of the country, while the Democratic Republic of Congo saw the outbreak begin earlier this month.
At present, they have existed nine reported cases in Guinea with five deaths. The Democratic Republic of Congo has recorded eight confirmed cases and four deaths in the latest outbreak, according to the World Health Organization.
The latest outbreaks of Ebola come as the world struggles to control the coronavirus, with the disease affecting millions of people around the world since the beginning of last year.