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Passengers Arriving in the U.S. From Mali Will Now Be Screened for Ebola

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Coast Guard Corpsman checks the temperature of a traveler at Washington Dulles International Airport
A U.S. Coast Guard Corpsman working with the Office of Field Operations checks the temperature of a traveler who has recently traveled to either Guinea, Sierra Leone or Liberia in this handout picture from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection taken at Washington Dulles International Airport on Oct. 16, 2014Handout—Reuters
By Helen Regan

From Monday, airports around the U.S. will begin to screen and monitor for Ebola passengers flying into the States from the West African country of Mali.

The Department for Homeland Security (DHS) says although there are no direct flights from Mali to the U.S., around 15 to 20 travelers each day transit through other countries to reach America, NBC reports.

“The CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] recommended this measure because there have been a number of confirmed cases of Ebola in Mali in recent days, and a large number of individuals may have been exposed to those cases,” the DHS said in a statement.

Travelers flying from Mali will also have to monitor their temperatures and any potential symptoms for 21 days after they arrive.

The U.S. already carries out these protocols on passengers flying from Ebola-hit Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.

[NBC]

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Write to Helen Regan at helen.regan@timeasia.com