US To Set Up Quarantine Facility In Kenya For Americans Exposed To Ebola

The Trump administration is expected to deploy US public health officers to Kenya to staff a quarantine facility there amid the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in a departure from procedure used during previous outbreaks of the virus, the WSJ reported. 

According to the report, the facility – which is pending signoff from the Kenyan government – will primarily be used for Americans who are exposed to, or at high risk of testing positive for the virus in the region, as well as Americans who test positive. 

While there are now no known Ebola cases in Kenya, the move comes as international and local health officials are racing to contain another deadly outbreak of a rare strain of Ebola in the Congo that is already the third largest in history just weeks after it likely began. 

Unlike during previous Ebola outbreaks, which saw Americans exposed to the virus brought back to the U.S. for monitoring or treatment, the Trump administration has decided to route potentially exposed Americans to other countries. 

Sure enough, members of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, a uniformed branch of the federal government under the Department of Health and Human Services, received notices to deploy to Kenya.

While so far mostly contained, the latest outbreak has seen an American doctor, who contracted Ebola while working in the Congo, flown to Germany last week. The US also diverted a Detroit-bound Air France flight to Canada last week over fears of a passenger’s possible Ebola exposure.

While the CDC has said the risk of Ebola spreading to the American public remains low, the Trump administration has nonetheless cracked down on travel from countries affected by the outbreak. Last week, the U.S. said it was pausing visa issuance for any travelers, including lawful permanent residents, who have been in South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo or Uganda within 21 days of planned travel to the U.S.  

As of Tuesday, there are at least 930 suspected Ebola cases, including 223 suspected deaths, in Congo, and seven cases with one death in Uganda, according to the World Health Organization. Health authorities further think the virus might have infected far more people across a broader region after spreading undetected for weeks.