Patient Admitted to D.C. Hospital With Ebola-Like Symptoms

A patient with Ebola-like symptoms who recently traveled to Nigeria has been admitted to Howard University Hospital in Washington D.C., according to a Howard spokesperson, but the person has not yet been confirmed to be infected with the disease.

“In an abundance of caution, we have activated the appropriate infection control protocols, including isolating the patient,” said Howard spokesperson Kerry-Ann Hamilton in a statement.

Hamilton declined to identify the patient, citing privacy concerns. The hospital is working closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health officials, she said.

This week marks a dramatic escalation in the spread of the deadly Ebola outbreak, which has killed more than 3,000 people in West Africa. If confirmed, the D.C. patient would be the second person diagnosed with Ebola in the United States. Earlier this week, a Liberian man was diagnosed with the disease and is currently being treated at a hospital in Dallas.