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JFK, Newark Among 5 Airports In US That Will Screen For Ebola
By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Oct 21, 2014
Modified Oct 21, 2014
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By
Rebecca Fishbein
Published Oct 21, 2014
Modified Oct 21, 2014
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The Ebola virus has slowly trickled into the United States, and though we're nowhere close to an EPIDEMIC, we've certainly started experiencing some panic. So, to mitigate the potential spread of the disease, the government's limiting flights from select West African countries to five U.S. airports equipped for Ebola screening. And, yes, JFK's one of those airports. So is Newark. Do not scream, and please remember that Cam'ron's anti-Ebola mask has not yet been approved by the F.D.A.
According to a statement from the Department of Homeland Security today, all passengers whose travel plans originate in Liberia, Sierra Leone or Guinea will have to fly into JFK, Newark, Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, Dulles International Airport in Virginia and Hartsfield Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.
"These airports account for about 94 percent of travelers flying to the United States from these countries," DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson said in a statement. "At present there are no direct, non-stop commercial flights from Liberia, Sierra Leone or Guinea to any airport in the United States."
At these airports, passengers will be isolated from other travelers while undergoing several layers of "enhanced screening," which includes having their temperature taken and completing a questionnaire, before they are admitted into the United States. Workers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will also be on hand if more screening is medically necessary. The DHS says they will also screen passengers who have been in been in one of those three countries within 21 days, which is the maximum number of days it takes for Ebola's symptoms to show up.
JFK has reportedly been screening passengers since October 11th, and last week they posted a Craigslist ad looking to hire people with basic medical training to perform said screening.
Of course, at least one medical expert cautions that screenings would not have prevented Thomas Eric Duncan, the traveler who brought Ebola into the United States, from getting into the country. "His symptoms did not develop until he had been here for four days," Dr. Richard Besser, chief health and medical editor for ABC News, told the station.
The DHS's new screening rules officially kick in tomorrow.
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