A Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agent examines an airline passenger at O’Hare International Airport on October 19, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois.
Scott Olson | Getty Images
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are requiring airlines to collect contact information for all passengers in Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo amid two separate Ebola outbreaks in African countries.
As of Thursday, airlines will be required to collect and deliver contact information to the CDC for all travelers to the United States who have been to the DRC or Guinea in the past 21 days prior to their arrival in the United States, the CDC said in Tuesday. On Friday, the CDC announced that it would channel travelers from both countries through six American airports in New York, Chicago, Atlanta, the District of Columbia, Newark and Los Angeles.
The risk of ebola spreading to the United States is “extremely low,” said the CDC last week, but health officials are preparing their public health response protocols to ensure that the disease does not enter the country.
“Timely monitoring of public health requires that health officials have immediate access to accurate and complete contact information for travelers arriving in the United States,” said CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky in a statement. “Any delay in contact with exposed individuals can increase the likelihood of the disease spreading.”
Airlines will be required to collect travelers’ names and addresses while in the U.S., primary contact phone numbers, secondary or emergency contact phone numbers and email addresses, the CDC said in a statement. It is “the minimum amount of information needed to locate travelers reliably,” added the CDC.
The information provided by travelers will be “verified by United States government officials on arrival to ensure that it is accurate and complete,” said the CDC. The agency noted that a February 2020 rule authorized the CDC to impose such a requirement on airlines.
“Air travel has the potential to transport people, some of whom may have been exposed to a communicable disease, to anywhere in the world in less than 24 hours,” said the CDC. “In certain situations, public health authorities may need to monitor travelers who have arrived from a country where an outbreak is occurring, such as Ebola outbreaks in the DRC and Guinea.”
These are breaking news. Check back here for updates.