The Trump administration said on Thursday that it would impose new entry restrictions for U.S. citizens who have recently been in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda or South Sudan, citing the Ebola outbreak in the region.
The Department of Homeland Security directed all flights carrying those travelers to arrive at Dulles International Airport in Virginia, where the government is putting in place “enhanced public health measures.”
The restrictions apply to all U.S. citizens and green card holders who were in those countries within 21 days of their arrival to the United States, according to a State Department alert on Thursday. The restrictions apply to flights departing after 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday.
The Department of Homeland Security did not elaborate on the enhanced public health measures it will carry out at Dulles. But the department said it would work with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to screen travelers arriving at the airport, which receives the largest number of travelers originating from Congo, Uganda and South Sudan.
Earlier this week, the C.D.C. invoked an emergency public health rule to block entry into the United States by travelers who had been in the three African nations in the past 21 days. That restriction did not apply to American citizens or U.S. service members.
The restrictions came after the World Health Organization declared the Ebola outbreak a global health emergency last weekend. The outbreak is suspected to have caused more than 130 deaths and nearly 600 infections, according to the W.H.O. The agency’s head said on Wednesday that there was little risk of the outbreak developing into a pandemic, even as the number of suspected cases and deaths continued to climb.
Madeleine Ngo covers immigration and economic policy for The Times.
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