WASHINGTON- The Trump administration is planning to send Americans exposed to Ebola to Kenya for quarantine and possible treatment as the United States scrambles to contain the growing outbreak spreading across parts of Central and East Africa.
According to reports by The Wall Street Journal and Reuters, U.S. officials are working on plans to establish a quarantine facility in Kenya that would host American citizens considered at high risk of Ebola infection or those who test positive while in the region.
The proposed facility, which was still awaiting approval from the Kenyan government as of Tuesday, would reportedly be staffed by officers from the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps under the Department of Health and Human Services.
The move marks a major shift in how the United States handles Ebola exposure cases involving its citizens abroad.
During previous Ebola outbreaks, infected or exposed Americans were typically evacuated back to the United States and treated in specialized biocontainment facilities such as Emory University Hospital in Atlanta or the Nebraska Medical Center.
However, the Trump administration has recently opted to send some American citizens exposed to Ebola to Europe instead of bringing them home.
Last week, an American missionary doctor who contracted Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo was evacuated to Germany for treatment.
The doctor, identified as Dr. Peter Stafford, was reportedly infected while treating patients in Congo, where the World Health Organization has declared the Ebola outbreak a global public health emergency.
Reuters reported that six other high-risk Americans were also being transferred to Germany and the Czech Republic for monitoring and possible treatment.
The outbreak, linked to the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, has spread rapidly through parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, raising fears of wider regional transmission. WHO has classified the situation as a “very high” risk outbreak.
According to the latest figures cited by Reuters, Congo has recorded more than 900 suspected cases and over 200 deaths, while Uganda has confirmed several cases.
Although no Ebola cases have been reported in Kenya, the country has become a strategic regional hub for surveillance and emergency response operations.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has already intensified screening measures at airports and imposed temporary travel restrictions on individuals arriving from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan.
Kenya’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said it was still verifying reports regarding the proposed quarantine facility.
The development is expected to spark debate both in Kenya and internationally over public health preparedness, diplomatic coordination and the handling of infectious disease outbreaks involving foreign nationals.
