NEW YORK – Amid widespread criticism of governmental and international handling of the Ebola crisis worldwide, the World Health Organization is touting success in two African nations where the virus had little impact.
The United Nations agency announced Monday that the outbreak was officially over in Nigeria after declaring Friday that Senegal was the first country in the current outbreak to be free of the disease.
But the handful of reported cases in the two nations pales in comparison to the toll in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. While Nigeria has seen only 20 cases and Senegal just one, as WHO reported Friday there have been 4,262 total cases in Liberia, 3,410 in Sierra Leone and 1,519 in Guinea.
Moreover, the outbreak in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea are different in type. Instead of a few isolated cases appearing largely because of air travel, the outbreak in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea is concentrated in over-crowded urban slum areas rather than a limited number of isolated cases in rural villages, as in previous outbreaks since 1976.
Still, WHO proclaimed success in Nigeria and Senegal as vindication of its containment protocols and of the necessity for international funding.
“This is a spectacular success story that shows that Ebola can be contained,” WHO said of Nigeria, the most populated country in Africa.
“The story of how Nigeria ended what many believed to be potentially the most explosive Ebola outbreak imaginable is worth telling in detail.”
WHO explained the Nigerian government reached 100 percent of known contacts in Lagos, the capital city, and 99.8 percent at the second outbreak site, in Port Harcourt, Nigeria’s oil hub.
Dr. Margaret Chan, the WHO director-general, summed up the success story as follows: “If a country like Nigeria, hampered by serious security problems, can do this – that is, make significant progress towards interrupting polio transmission, eradicate guinea-worm disease and contain Ebola, all at the same time – any country in the world experiencing an imported case can hold onward transmission to just a handful of cases.”
Rubio introduces bill to restrict air travel
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., announced plans Monday to introduce legislation when Congress returns to session after the mid-term elections in November. The bill is designed to impose “common sense travel restrictions” on West Africa by creating a temporary ban on new visas for nationals of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone seeking to come to the United States.
Rubio seeks to put the travel restrictions in place immediately that would stay in place until the Centers for Disease Control certify the Ebola outbreak has been contained.
New countries in which the outbreak reaches significant numbers would be added to the ban, and the legislation would exempt individuals approved to come to the U.S. for training related to the outbreak.
“While Ebola’s deadly reach has proven to be a complex and unique international challenge, the many uncertainties surrounding this virus continue to threaten U.S. national security,” said Rubio. “Our biggest priority is ensuring that sufficient safeguards are in place to limit the spread of Ebola, contain it at the source, and protect Americans.”
The Associated Press reported Friday travel restrictions imposed by other African nations on Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria have been important in preventing the virus from spreading across the continent.
Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau and Senegal, all of which share borders with one of the three most affected countries, have closed those borders, the AP noted. Meanwhile, South Africa and Zambia have imposed travel entry restrictions, and Kenya Airways, the nation’s main airlines, has stopped flying to the three most affected West African nations.
Nigeria initially banned flights from West African countries with Ebola but relaxed the restriction once government officials judged the airlines were competent to take travelers’ temperatures and administer health questionnaires to prevent people infected with Ebola from flying.
Both WHO and CDC have maintained repeatedly that restrictions on commercial air travel to West Africa would hamper international efforts to contain the disease by making it more difficult to get medical professionals and equipment to the affected nations on a timely basis.
Separately, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigrations Services, USCIS, a division under the Department of Homeland Security, announced “immigration relief” measures for citizens of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea already in the United States. It enables citizens of the three countries to receive expedited processing of requests to extend their stay in the United States, obtain work permits or receive forgiveness for failure to appear at required interviews or submit required evidence.
On Oct. 2, the Washington Post reported the number of visas issued to Liberians by the U.S. had spiked to around 3,500 last year, with another 10,000 granted to people from Sierra Leone and Guinea.
Ebola Czar starts work Wednesday
On Monday, the White House said newly announced "Ebola czar" Ron Klain would begin working Wednesday, although the White House reported he already has been meeting with CDC staff.
Klain is not expected to testify Friday at a hearing scheduled by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on the federal government’s response to Ebola in the U.S. The panel also will examine whether the federal government is adequately training and equipping frontline health care workers and military personnel that may come into contact with Ebola patients in the U.S. and West Africa.
The White House also announced President Obama, in Chicago today for political campaigning, was briefed Monday afternoon on the domestic response to Ebola.
The president has “spoken with counterparts from around the world over the last few weeks,” and “he has held calls with eight counterparts in recent days” who have committed “at least $300 million in financial contributions to date, plus personnel and resources on the ground,” the White House explained to reporters.