jordan pulse -

The United States announced on Monday that it will strengthen precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus. These steps include screening passengers arriving from affected areas and temporarily suspending visa services in some countries.
​The measures, announced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), come as the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a public health emergency of international concern resulting from an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda.
​Satish Pillai, the CDC's Ebola response incident manager, told reporters that an American citizen contracted the virus while working in the DRC. "The patient developed symptoms over the weekend and tested positive late Sunday evening," Pillai said, adding that efforts are underway to evacuate the individual to Germany for medical treatment. He added that the United States is also working to evacuate six other Americans for health monitoring.
​According to Pillai, about 25 people currently work in the US office in the DRC, and the CDC will meet a request to dispatch an additional technical coordinator to the country.
​In a statement, the CDC assessed the immediate risk to the American public as "low," noting that prevention protocols could be adjusted as more information becomes available. In addition to airport screening procedures, the CDC announced it will implement entry restrictions under a Title 42 order for non-US passport holders who have traveled to Uganda, the DRC, or South Sudan within the past 21 days. Consequently, the US Embassy in Kampala announced it has temporarily suspended all visa services.
​US President Donald Trump expressed his concern regarding the outbreak but noted, "I think it's largely confined to Africa right now."
​Health experts remain highly concerned because the current outbreak is caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus, for which there is currently no licensed vaccine or specific targeted treatment. Nearly 350 suspected cases have been reported, with the majority of infections occurring in individuals aged 20 to 39, and over 60% of them being women.
​The United States formally withdrew from the World Health Organization earlier this year under the Trump administration. In recent days, US officials have avoided answering questions regarding the potential impact of the administration's budget cuts to the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which historically played a pivotal role in responding to Ebola outbreaks in Africa.
​AFP