\n\t\t\t\t\t\tAmid a fast-moving Ebola outbreak, the U.S. government is expanding the list of airports that can screen passengers entering the U.S. who have been in certain African countries.Related video above: Ebola spreading rapidly in DRC, infectious disease expert explains the situationAirline passengers traveling to the U.S. who have been in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda or South Sudan in the previous 21 days will be able to land at international airports in Atlanta and Houston, as well as Dulles airport outside Washington, for health screenings.The updated orders, posted by the Department of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, will go into effect for Atlanta\u2019s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport for flights departing after 11:59 p.m. EDT on Friday and Houston\u2019s George Bush Intercontinental Airport for flights departing after 11:59 p.m. EDT on Tuesday.Atlanta and Houston are set to host the DRC\u2019s national soccer team during FIFA World Cup matches next month.Before Friday, U.S.-bound flights with passengers who were recently in an Ebola-affected region of Africa could land only at Dulles International Airport.”The Dulles requirement applies to all passengers, including U.S. citizens and , who were present” in the DRC, South Sudan and Uganda, the U.S. Department of State said Thursday in a travel advisory.At least 10 staffers with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are being sent to Dulles to help with screening of arriving passengers amid the Ebola outbreak, a person at the CDC with knowledge of the plan told CNN.The CDC has also invoked Title 42 \u2014 a public health law that restricts entry into the US during outbreaks of communicable diseases \u2014 for at least 30 days starting Monday. The move includes entry restrictions on non-citizens who have been in the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan, which borders both affected countries, in the previous 21 days, as well as screening and monitoring of people arriving from these countries.”We care about Ebola, we don\u2019t want anyone dying or being affected by Ebola, but our number one priority will always be making sure it doesn\u2019t come to the United States,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday.”Objective number two is do what we can to help the people of DRC and neighboring countries so it doesn\u2019t spread.”The Department of Homeland Security said Customs and Border Protection “is continuing to coordinate with airlines, international partners, and port-of-entry officials to identify and manage travelers who may have been exposed to the Ebola virus.”An Air France flight bound for Detroit from Paris\u2019 Charles de Gaulle Airport was briefly diverted to Montreal on Wednesday afternoon because a Congolese passenger was denied entry to the U.S., the airline said.CPB said the passenger had boarded “in error” and the flight was prohibited from landing in Detroit. “CBP, in coordination with CDC, is taking the necessary measures to protect public health and reduce the risk of Ebola disease introduction into the United States.”Mark Johnson, a spokesperson for the Public Health Agency of Canada, said in a statement that an agency quarantine officer “assessed the traveller and determined they were asymptomatic. The traveller has departed back to Paris.” The flight and other passengers continued to Detroit.How entry screening worksThe CDC said Thursday that the airport screenings are “part of a layered approach that, when used with other public health measures already in place to detect symptomatic arriving travelers, can slow and reduce the spread of disease into the United States.”People who have been in the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan in the previous three weeks will be escorted to a special area of the airport where they\u2019ll be asked about their travel history and any symptoms, the agency said. CDC workers will also look for signs of illness and take their temperature.Travelers who don\u2019t have symptoms will be given information on what to do if they become ill and then allowed to proceed to their destinations. Their contact information will be shared with state and local health departments for follow-up.Travelers who have a fever or other possible symptoms, “who are reasonably believed to be infected with or exposed to Ebola,” will be taken to a hospital, where they\u2019ll be isolated and tested. The CDC will work with local health departments to notify fellow passengers.A Dulles spokesperson said they do not expect significant impacts on airport customers.”The Airports Authority is working with federal partners to support efforts led by the Centers for Disease Control affecting various international flights arriving at Dulles Airport. This includes providing staff and public safety resources as needed,” the spokesperson said.Americans arrive in Europe for care, monitoringThere are more than 600 suspected Ebola cases and 160 deaths across the DRC and Uganda, according to the DRC. The CDC emphasized Wednesday that the outbreak is of low risk to the general public, \u201cbut we will continue to evaluate the evolving situation and may adjust public health measures as additional information becomes available.\u201dOne American, Dr. Peter Stafford, tested positive for Ebola while working in the DRC and has been hospitalized in Germany. His wife, Dr. Rebekah Stafford, is asymptomatic and being monitored in a separate portion of the hospital in Germany, as are the couple\u2019s four children.The Stafford family was stationed with the international charity Serge at a hospital in the DRC when the World Health Organization declared Ebola a public health emergency.\u201cHe\u2019s in a state of mind and of health that he\u2019s able to communicate with us,\u201d Matt Allison, the executive director of Serge, told CNN on Wednesday. \u201cHe continues to have a fever, dizziness, lightheadedness and some nausea, which are fairly typical symptoms for Ebola. But he\u2019s getting a monoclonal antibody treatment.\u201dWithin the space of a day, Stafford\u2019s health had improved. “He needed assistance to even walk,” the executive director said. There has been “some progress, and we\u2019re really encouraged.”In an update on Thursday, Serge said Stafford shared, “Before I was evacuated, I was feeling really concerned I wasn\u2019t going to make it. And now I\u2019m cautiously optimistic.”Another U.S. doctor who was working in DRC, Dr. Patrick LaRochelle, has arrived at a hospital in the Czech Republic for monitoring. He is in quarantine and does not have symptoms, Serge said Thursday.Czech authorities have stressed that there is no risk to the public after the country agreed to accept the patient.”Only two countries were asked for help: Germany and the Czech Republic,” Czech Health Minister Adam Vojt\u011bch said Wednesday.”When we asked why, we were told that the Czech Republic has a very good reputation when it comes to handling infectious diseases,” Vojt\u011bch added.Dr. Hana Roh\u00e1\u010dov\u00e1, the chief of the Infectious Diseases Clinic at the Bulovka Hospital in Prague, said her team hadn\u2019t received much “concrete information” about the patient and the nature and time of his contact with infected people.If asymptomatic, “he will be under observation and we will not be doing any tests or investigations \u2014 because no tests can prove if the patient is inside the incubation period when there are no symptoms,” she said.Vojt\u011bch added that the treatment would not be a “cheap undertaking,” but the entire medical and transport bill will be picked up by the U.S.CNN\u2019s Brenda Goodman, Katherine Dillinger, Deidre McPhillips, Diego Mendoza and Larry Madowo contributed to this report.\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Amid a fast-moving Ebola outbreak, the U.S. government is expanding the list of airports that can screen passengers entering the U.S. who have been in certain African countries.<\/p>\n
Related video above: Ebola spreading rapidly in DRC, infectious disease expert explains the situation<\/p>\n
Airline passengers traveling to the U.S. who have been in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda or South Sudan in the previous 21 days will be able to land at international airports in Atlanta and Houston, as well as Dulles airport outside Washington, for health screenings.<\/p>\n