Enhanced Airport Screening for Ebola Halted in the United States

Passengers will be no longer screened for the potential Ebola virus infection from West Africa in the United States.

Guinea will be removed "from the list of nations affected by Ebola for which travelers are subject to enhanced US visa and port-of-entry screening," said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

‘The United States will stop enhanced screening for Ebola virus at all airports in the country.’

"Guinea will be the last of the affected countries in West Africa to be removed from enhanced entry screening measures."

The change means that travelers from Guinea -- as well as Liberia and Sierra Leone -- will be able to enter the United States through any available port of entry, instead of being routed to one of five specially selected airports.

"Travelers departing Guinea will remain subject to outbound screening measures, and the United States will continue to support Guinea's Ebola prevention and detection measures, including at its primary international airport in Conakry," said the CDC.

"Travelers from Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone are still encouraged to watch their health for 21 days after leaving one of these countries and to contact their local health departments or seek healthcare if they develop symptoms consistent with Ebola."

Guinea was declared free of Ebola by the World Health Organization on December 29, 2015.

The US Department of Homeland Security said the enhanced travel measures were taken in response to the public health emergency faced in 2014, the peak year of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

"During this time not a single traveler exhibiting Ebola symptoms is known to have entered the country undetected," the DHS said in a statement.

"Over the past 16 months, DHS has screened more than 42,000 travelers from Ebola-affected countries."

Source: AFP