US says Americans returning from Congo must wait 21 days, citing Ebola

The United States said on Wednesday that American citizens returning from the Democratic Republic of Congo must spend 21 days in a third country before entering the United States, citing concerns about the Ebola outbreak in the region.

The restrictions, issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a website update dated July 14, also apply to some travelers from Uganda and South Sudan. Other travelers from those countries will continue to undergo airport screening, as they have in recent months.

The CDC said exceptions may be granted on a case-by-case basis for humanitarian or law-enforcement reasons.

Reuters first reported the new policy on Tuesday, saying the Trump administration was blocking Americans in Congo from boarding U.S.-bound commercial flights.

Dr. Daniel Jernigan, a former senior CDC official who led the agency's response during the 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, said on Tuesday that using a "do-not-board" policy to prevent U.S. citizens from returning home when they have little risk of Ebola infection is unprecedented.

"This change in policy risks shifting medical and public-health responsibility to third countries, it may encourage travelers to conceal itineraries or exposures, and it will make recruitment of American outbreak responders more difficult."

The CDC and other federal agencies had already issued an order this spring that prevented non-citizens, including those with extended legal status, from entering the U.S. directly from those three countries and required the same 21-day stay in another country.

Americans had been allowed to enter at select airports, where they were screened by officials on travel history, temperature and symptoms.

The outbreak in Congo has resulted in more than 1,900 confirmed Ebola cases and over 700 deaths, according to official data, with all cases linked to the Bundibugyo strain.

No cases linked to the outbreak have been confirmed in the United States, and the risk to the American public and travelers remains low, according to the CDC.

-Reporting by Kunal Das in BengaluruEditing by Ros Russell/Reuters