Northern Virginia’s Dulles International Airport is the focus of the United States’ effort to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus from East and Central Africa.
Northern Virginia’s Dulles International Airport is the focus of the United States’ effort to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus from East and Central Africa.
A new Department of Homeland Security rule took effect at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, requiring all U.S.-bound passengers who have recently been in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda or East Sudan to first travel to Dulles Airport for enhanced Ebola screening, before continuing to their destination.
And the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new guidance Thursday for travelers planning to travel to the U.S.
There are no direct flights to Dulles Airport from any of the three affected countries. However, each airline traveling to the U.S. with passengers who have traveled to the DRC, Uganda or East Sudan in the past 21 days will be required to fly to Dulles to be screened.
“CDC will conduct enhanced public health entry screening for these travelers and confirm their contact information for public health follow-up if recommended,” according to a CDC statement released late Thursday morning.
On Monday, the CDC issued an order suspending entry into the U.S. for foreign nationals from the three affected countries.
In its new guidance, the CDC explained the steps non-U.S. citizens should take to enter this country: “Travelers that have been in the DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan in the 21 days before their flight and are scheduled to travel to the United States while screening is taking place will be contacted by their airline to rebook travel to IAD,” which is Dulles International Airport.
The virus causing an outbreak in the Congo is suspected of killing more than 130 people and is less common than others that cause Ebola, which is complicating the response because there are no specific treatments or vaccines.
“The risk for importation of Ebola virus to the United States is low at this time,” according to the new CDC statement. “However, public health entry screening is part of a layered approach that, when used with other public health measures already in place to detect ill arriving travelers, can slow and the reduce the spread of disease into the United States.”
According to a DHS spokesperson, U.S. 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.”
U.S. Customs and Border Protection and DHS have not disclosed whether the screening is done on the arriving airplane, or in the area where CBP typically screens international travelers arriving at Dulles.
During a WTOP visit to Dulles Airport on Thursday, operations ran smoothly with no apparent delays or inconveniences for travelers.
“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. We are not expecting any significant impacts on airport customers,” an airport spokesman said.
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