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US to screen for Ebola at airports as European medics deploy to region

A health official uses a thermometer to screen people in front of Kibuli Muslim Hospital in Kampala, 16 May, 2026
A health official uses a thermometer to screen people in front of Kibuli Muslim Hospital in Kampala, 16 May, 2026 Copyright  AP Photo
Copyright AP Photo
By Evelyn Ann-Marie Dom
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The latest development has raised questions about the Trump administration's decision to cut USAID and withdraw from the WHO.

The United States is stepping up its measures to prevent the spread of Ebola, while reassuring that the risk to Americans remains low.

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Measures announced by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) include screening air travellers arriving from regions affected by the outbreak. Non-US passport holders who travelled to Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) or South Sudan within the past 21 days will also face entry restrictions.

The US Embassy in the Ugandan capital Kampala said it had temporarily paused all visa services.

"At this time, CDC assesses the immediate risk to the general US public as low, but we will continue to evaluate the evolving situation and may adjust public health measures as additional information becomes available," the health agency said in a statement.

US President Donald Trump said he was "concerned" by the outbreak but that he believes "that it's been confined right now to Africa."

The decision comes after an American citizen tested positive for the virus in DRC following exposure related to their work there.

Medical supplies are stacked inside a World Health Organisation (WHO) warehouse in Nairobi, 18 May, 2026
Medical supplies are stacked inside a World Health Organisation (WHO) warehouse in Nairobi, 18 May, 2026 AP Photo

"The person developed symptoms over the weekend and tested positive late Sunday," Satish Pillai, the World Health Organization (WHO) Ebola response incident manager said. The individual will be transferred to Germany for treatment.

The US is working to evacuate six more people for health monitoring, Pillai added.

On Monday, the US State Department said it activated a response plan and was working together with the CDC and the US military on the potential repatriation of Americans affected by the outbreak.

"Within 48 hours, the Department activated a response plan and mobilised an initial $13 million in foreign assistance for immediate response efforts," the statement said.

"This funding bolsters each country’s own response, supporting surveillance, laboratory capacity, risk communication, safe burials, entry and exit screening, and clinical case management."

US aid cuts and withdrawal from WHO

US officials have avoided questions about how the administration's cutting of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) has impacted efforts to monitor and contain the spread of the virus.

USAID was responsible for administering foreign humanitarian aid and development assistance worldwide.

The agency had been one of the prime targets of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which sought to eliminate “wasteful” government spending.

The United States also formally withdrew from the WHO this year.

Tent consignments headed for Congo are seen at a World Health Organization (WHO) warehouse in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026.
Tent consignments headed for Congo are seen at a World Health Organization (WHO) warehouse in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. AP Photo/Jackson Njehia

On Sunday, the WHO declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda as a global health emergency.

At least 100 deaths have been reported, with around 400 suspected cases as of Monday. Most of those affected are aged between 20 and 39 and more than 60 percent are women.

Meanwhile, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said it was deploying experts to Africa to support the Ebola outbreak response.

The agency said its team would "immediately deploy" to the Africa CDC's headquarters in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

"ECDC is in discussions with the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations and the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network regarding the possible deployment of additional experts as the situation evolves, for example, in infection prevention, epidemiology, surveillance, and risk communication," the ECDC said in a statement.

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