US temporarily restricts entry for green-card holders from African countries

Temporary Entry Ban for Green-Card Holders from Certain African Countries

US officials have instituted a temporary ban preventing green-card holders from entering the country if they have been in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Uganda, or South Sudan within the last 21 days.

This measure, announced on Friday, is part of broader efforts to stop the spread of Ebola into the US. Previously, the travel restrictions applied only to non-citizens, but now they include lawful permanent residents while exempting US citizens.

The order states, “HHS and CDC have determined that allowing the director of CDC or other secretarial delegate the discretion to deny entry for certain lawful permanent residents is essential for public health.” It also notes that green-card holders may have closer ties to communities abroad, making their exclusion less burdensome compared to US citizens.

For American citizens returning from the affected regions, the CDC has now identified an additional entry point into the US beyond Dulles Airport in Washington. They mentioned that enhanced Ebola screening will also be conducted at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta airport.

Due to “resource constraints,” managing a quarantinable disease effectively is challenging. Currently, 18 individuals are in a quarantine unit at the University of Nebraska after being released from a cruise ship affected by hantavirus.

The agency pointed out that containing such diseases requires significant resources and specialized facilities with limited capacity. In a separate statement, the CDC emphasized that applying this authority to lawful permanent residents for a limited time strikes a balance between protecting public health and managing emergency resources.

Last week, Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, remarked, “Our number one objective regarding Ebola is clear. We must ensure it doesn’t affect the United States. We can’t have Ebola cases coming here.”

The entry restrictions on green-card holders from the specified African countries are set for an initial period of 30 days.

The World Health Organization has increased the risk level regarding the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola in the DRC, labeling it as “very high.” The outbreak in both the DRC and Uganda has been declared an emergency of international concern.

As of now, the WHO reports 82 confirmed cases in the DRC, which include seven confirmed fatalities, along with 177 suspected deaths and nearly 750 suspected cases tied to the Bundibugyo strain.

On Saturday, the Africa CDC indicated that the Ebola virus poses a risk to ten African countries, including Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Zambia.

Reports have emerged about unrest in a town at the center of the Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC, where residents vandalized a health center treating Ebola patients and 18 individuals suspected of infection fled the facility.

Furthermore, on Thursday, another treatment center in Rwampara was set ablaze after families were barred from retrieving a local man’s body. The bodies of Ebola victims can be highly infectious, posing a risk of further spread if not handled carefully during burials and funeral gatherings. Authorities are trying to manage this sensitive process when possible.