Ebola virus cases in the United States#Craig Spencer

{{Main|West African Ebola virus epidemic}}

{{Ebola virus disease epidemic}}

{{Main|Thomas Eric Duncan}}

Thomas Eric Duncan

File:Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas 02.jpg

Duncan began experiencing symptoms on September 24, 2014, and arrived at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital emergency room at {{nowrap|10:37 p.m.}} on September 25.{{Cite web |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Congressional committee releases timeline detailing how Presbyterian treated Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan |url=http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2014/10/congressional-committee-releases-timeline-detailing-how-presbyterian-treated-ebola-patient-thomas-eric-duncan.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141025203856/http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2014/10/congressional-committee-releases-timeline-detailing-how-presbyterian-treated-ebola-patient-thomas-eric-duncan.html/ |archive-date=October 25, 2014 |access-date=October 25, 2014 |website=The Dallas Morning News}} At {{nowrap|11:36 p.m.}}, a triage nurse asked him about his symptoms, and he reported feeling "abdominal pain, dizziness, nausea and headache (new onset)". The nurse recorded a fever of {{convert|100.1|F|C}}, but did not inquire as to his travel history as this was not triage protocol at the time. At {{nowrap|12:05 a.m.}}, Duncan was admitted into a treatment area room where the on-duty physician accessed the electronic health record (EHR). The physician noted nasal congestion, a runny nose, and abdominal tenderness. Duncan was given paracetamol (acetaminophen) at {{nowrap|1:24 a.m.}} CT scan results came back noting "no acute disease" for the abdominal and pelvic areas and "unremarkable" for the head. Lab results returned showing slightly low white blood cells, low platelets, increased creatinine, and elevated levels of the liver enzyme AST.{{Cite web |title=Notable Elements of Mr. Duncan's Initial Emergency Department Visit |url=http://energycommerce.house.gov/sites/republicans.energycommerce.house.gov/files/Hearings/OI/20141016/Timeline2.pdf |access-date=October 27, 2014 |publisher=US Congress}} His temperature was noted at {{convert|103.0|F|C}} at {{nowrap|3:02 a.m.}} and {{convert|101.2|F|C}} at {{nowrap|3:32 a.m.}} Duncan was diagnosed with sinusitis and abdominal pain and sent home at {{nowrap|3:37 a.m.}} with a prescription for antibiotics, which are not effective for treating viral diseases.{{Cite news |last=Berman |first=Mark |date=October 1, 2014 |title=Texas Ebola patient told hospital of travel from West Africa but was released |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2014/10/01/texas-patient-with-ebola-told-hospital-workers-during-initial-visit-he-had-traveled-from-west-africa |access-date=October 3, 2014 |work=The Washington Post}}

On October 5, the CDC announced it had lost track of a homeless man who had been in the same ambulance as Duncan. They announced efforts were underway to find the man and place him in a comfortable and compassionate monitoring environment. Later that day, the CDC announced that the man had been found and was being monitored.{{Cite web |date=October 5, 2014 |title=Found: Homeless Man Sought in Ebola Case Being Monitored |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/found-homeless-man-sought-ebola-case-being-monitored-n218691 |access-date=October 5, 2014 |website=NBC News}}

Up to 100 people may have had contact with those who had direct contact with Duncan after he showed symptoms. Health officials later monitored 50 low- and 10 high-risk contacts, the high-risk contacts being Duncan's close family members and three ambulance workers who took him to the hospital.{{Cite news |date=October 3, 2014 |title=10 people at 'high risk' for Ebola as 50 people monitored daily after contact with Dallas Ebola patient |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/dallas-ebola-patient-sick-talk-phone-report-article-1.1962354 |access-date=October 3, 2014 |work=New York Daily News}} Everyone who came into contact with Duncan was being monitored daily to watch for symptoms of the virus,{{Cite news |date=October 4, 2014 |title=Hospital: Dallas Ebola patient in critical condition |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/04/health/ebola-us/index.html |access-date=October 5, 2014 |work=CNN}} until October 20, when health officials removed 43 out of the 48 initial contacts of Thomas Duncan from isolation.{{Cite news |last=Phillip |first=Abby |date=October 20, 2014 |title=Dallas officials plead for compassion, not stigma as 43 leave Ebola isolation |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/10/20/dallas-officials-plead-for-compassion-not-stigma-as-43-leave-ebola-isolation |access-date=October 20, 2014 |work=The Washington Post}} On November 7, 2014, Dallas was officially declared "Ebola free" after 177 monitored people cleared the 21 day threshold without becoming ill.{{Cite news |last=Rice |first=Chelsea |last2=Levingston |first2=Katie |last3=Allison |first3=Meghan |title=Ebola Today: Dallas is Officially Ebola-Free; Fewer Americans Googling Ebola |url=https://www.boston.com/health/2014/11/07/ebola-today-amber-vinson-has-idea-how-she-contracted-ebola/2cvadgjwDQslZ3m75vr4zO/story.html |access-date=November 7, 2014 |work=The Boston Globe}}

File:Barack Obama hugs Nina Pham, a Dallas nurse who survived Ebola, 2014.jpg

Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, initially blamed a breach in protocol for the infection.{{Cite news |last=Phillip |first=Abby |date=October 12, 2014 |title=CDC confirms second Ebola case in Texas. Health worker wore 'full' protective gear |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2014/10/12/dallas-health-care-worker-who-treated-thomas-eric-duncan-has-tested-positive-for-ebola/ |access-date=October 12, 2014 |work=The Washington Post}} The hospital's chief clinical officer, Dr. Dan Varga, said all staff had followed CDC recommendations. Bonnie Costello of National Nurses United said, "You don't scapegoat and blame when you have a disease outbreak. We have a system failure. That is what we have to correct."[http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns-rt-us-health-ebola-usa-nurse-20141012-story.html#page=1 "U.S. CDC head criticized for blaming 'protocol breach' as nurse gets Ebola"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141013181301/http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns-rt-us-health-ebola-usa-nurse-20141012-story.html#page=1 |date=October 13, 2014 }}, Chicago Tribune, October 13, 2014. Frieden later spoke to "clarify" that he had not found "fault with the hospital or the healthcare worker".{{Cite news |title=Fort Worth Alcon worker exposed to Ebola |url=http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/10/14/6199347/facebook-founder-donates-25-million.html |access-date=October 14, 2014 |work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram}} National Nurses United criticized the hospital for its lack of Ebola protocols and for guidelines that were "constantly changing".{{Cite news |date=October 15, 2014 |title=Nurses' union slams Texas hospital for lack of Ebola protocol |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/15/health/texas-ebola-nurses-union-claims/index.html?hpt=hp_t1 |access-date=October 15, 2014 |publisher=CNN}} Briana Aguirre, a nurse who had cared for Nina Pham, criticized the hospital in an appearance on NBC's Today Show. Aguirre said that she and others had not received proper training or personal protective equipment, and that the hospital had not provided consistent protocols for handling potential Ebola patients into the second week of the crisis.{{Cite web |last=Lauer |first=Matt |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Dallas nurse Briana Aguirre |url=http://www.today.com/health/dallas-nurse-we-never-talked-about-ebola-thomas-eric-duncan-2D80220579 |access-date=October 18, 2014 |website=Today |publisher=ABC}} A report indicated that healthcare workers did not wear hazmat suits until Duncan's test results confirmed his infection due to Ebola, two days after his admission to the hospital.{{Cite web |date=October 24, 2014 |title=Was CDC Too Quick To Blame Dallas Nurses In Care Of Ebola Patient? |url=https://www.npr.org/2014/10/24/358574357/was-cdc-too-quick-to-blame-dallas-nurses-in-care-of-ebola-patient |access-date=October 25, 2014 |publisher=NPR.org}} Frieden later said that the CDC could have been more aggressive in the management and control of the virus at the hospital.{{Cite news |date=October 15, 2014 |title=Second Health Care Worker With Ebola Was In Isolation Within 90 Minutes: Official |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/15/ebola-isolation-90-minutes_n_5988860.html |access-date=October 15, 2014 |work=Huffington Post}}

On March 2, 2015 The New York Times reported that Pham filed a suit against Texas Health Resources, her hospital's parent company, accusing it of "negligence, fraud and invasion of privacy".Richard Perez-Pena, [https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/03/us/nurse-who-contracted-ebola-in-the-us-sues-her-hospital-employer.html "Nurse Who Contracted Ebola in the U.S. Sues Her Hospital Employer"]. The New York Times. Retrieved on March 3, 2015. Pham was described as still experiencing numerous physical and psychological problems, listing lack of proper training as the reason for her illness.

File:Aeromedical Biological Containment System (ABCS).jpg (ABCS), the same model used to transport both Nina Pham and Amber Vinson to isolation units]]

{{As of|2014|10|15|df=us}}, there were 76 Texas Presbyterian Hospital health care workers being monitored because they had had some level of contact with Thomas Duncan.{{Cite web |date=October 15, 2014 |title=Ebola outbreak in the U.S., by the numbers |url=http://www.nj.com/healthfit/index.ssf/2014/10/ebola_outbreak_in_the_us_by_the_numbers.html |access-date=October 26, 2014 |website=NJ.com}} On October 16, after learning that Vinson had traveled on a plane before her Ebola diagnosis, the Texas Department of State Health Services advised all health care workers exposed to Duncan to avoid travel and public places until 21 days after their last known exposure.{{Cite web |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Movement of Persons with Possible Exposure to Ebola |url=https://www.dshs.texas.gov/sites/default/files/Movement-People-Possible-Exposure-Ebola.pdf |access-date=January 21, 2025 |publisher=Texas Department of State Health Services}}

On October 23, Craig Spencer,{{Cite web |date=October 23, 2014 |title=New York Doctor Just Back From Africa Has Ebola |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/new-york-doctor-just-back-africa-has-ebola-n232561 |access-date=October 23, 2014 |website=NBC News}} a physician who treated Ebola patients in West Africa, tested positive for Ebola at Bellevue Hospital Center after having a {{Convert|100.3|F|C}} fever. Officials said he was hospitalized with fever, nausea, pain, and fatigue.{{Cite news |last=Shimon Prokupecz |last2=Catherine E. Shoichet |date=November 10, 2014 |title=New York doctor now Ebola free, will be released from hospital |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/10/health/new-york-doctor-craig-spencer-ebola-free/ |publisher=CNN}} He had flown to New York City from Guinea within the previous ten days,{{Cite news |last=Susman, Tina |date=October 23, 2014 |title=Manhattan doctor tests positive for Ebola |url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-ebola-new-york-20141024-story.html |access-date=October 23, 2014 |work=Los Angeles Times}} and contacted the city's Department of Health and Doctors without Borders after showing symptoms.{{Cite news |date=October 23, 2014 |title=Patient at New York City hospital tests positive for Ebola, reports say |url=http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/10/23/health-care-worker-being-tested-for-possible-ebola-at-new-york-city-hospital |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024023208/http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/10/23/health-care-worker-being-tested-for-possible-ebola-at-new-york-city-hospital/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 24, 2014 |access-date=October 23, 2014 |publisher=Fox News}}{{Cite news |last=Alchindor, Yaminche |date=October 23, 2014 |title=Ebola hits New York City |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/10/23/ebola-in-nyc-the-answer-will-be-here-in-12-hours/17786777 |access-date=October 23, 2014 |work=USA Today}} Dr. Spencer traveled to Guinea to treat Ebola victims on September 16 and returned on October 16. He had been self-monitoring for symptoms of the disease, and began to feel sluggish on October 21, but did not show any symptoms for two days.{{Cite news |last=Marc Santora |date=October 23, 2014 |title=Doctor in New York City Tests Positive for Ebola |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/24/nyregion/craig-spencer-is-tested-for-ebola-virus-at-bellevue-hospital-in-new-york-city.html |access-date=October 23, 2014 |work=The New York Times}} His case was the first to be diagnosed in New York.{{Cite news |last=Phillip |first=Abby |date=October 23, 2014 |title=New York City physician tests positive for Ebola |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/10/23/n-y-health-worker-who-recently-returned-from-west-africa-being-evaluated-for-ebola |access-date=October 23, 2014 |work=The Washington Post}} The city was trying to find people who may have been in contact with Dr. Spencer between October 21 and 23.

On October 22, the day before he had symptoms, Dr. Spencer rode the New York City Subway, walked on the High Line park, went to a bowling alley and a restaurant in Brooklyn, took an Uber to his home in Manhattan, and took a {{convert|3|mi|km|adj=on}} jog in Harlem near where he lived.{{Cite web |last=Ellis, Jonathan |date=October 24, 2014 |title=Timeline of Everywhere the NYC Ebola Patient Went During His 'Self-Isolation' |url=http://mashable.com/2014/10/24/nyc-ebola-patient-map/ |access-date=October 24, 2014 |website=Mashable}}{{Cite news |date=October 24, 2014 |title=New York Ebola case no cause for alarm, mayor says |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/24/health/new-york-ebola-case |access-date=October 24, 2014 |work=CNN}} Three other people who were with Dr. Spencer in the previous few days were quarantined as well.{{Cite web |date=October 24, 2014 |title=After 1st Ebola case in NYC, 3 others quarantined |url=http://www.northwestgeorgianews.com/associated_press/news/national/after-st-ebola-case-in-nyc-others-quarantined/article_e0af72a4-5b99-11e4-8c44-0017a43b2370.html |access-date=October 24, 2014 |website=NW Georgia News |publisher=Associated Press}} Dr. Spencer's apartment and the bowling alley he went to were cleaned by hazmat company Bio Recovery Corporation.{{Cite news |last=Laura Davison |last2=Sonali Basak |last3=Madeline McMahon |date=October 25, 2014 |title=Bio-Recovery Leads Cleanup of Ebola Spaces in New York |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-24/bio-recovery-leads-cleanup-of-ebola-spaces-in-new-york.html |access-date=October 25, 2014 |work=Bloomberg}}{{Cite news |last=Mueller |first=Benjamin |date=October 27, 2014 |title=For Crew in New York, Ebola Virus Is Fought With Scrub Brushes and Cleanser |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/28/nyregion/ebola-new-york-hazmat-workers.html |work=The New York Times}} Health officials stated it was unlikely that Dr. Spencer could have transmitted the disease through subway poles, hand railings, or via bowling balls.{{Cite news |last=Donald G. McNeil Jr. |date=October 3, 2014 |title=Ask Well: How Does Ebola Spread? How Long Can the Virus Survive? |url=http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/03/ebola-ask-well-spread-public-transit |access-date=October 24, 2014 |work=The New York Times}}{{Cite news |last=Donald G. McNeil Jr. |date=October 23, 2014 |title=Can You Get Ebola From a Bowling Ball? |url=http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/23/can-you-get-ebola-from-a-bowling-ball |access-date=October 24, 2014 |work=The New York Times}}

New York hospitals, health-workers, and officials had conducted weeks of drills and training in preparation for patients like Dr. Spencer. Upon arrival at the hospital, he was put in a specially designed isolation center for treatment. Not many details about the treatment were given, except that he participated in decisions relating to his medical care.{{Cite news |last=Melanie Grey West |date=November 11, 2014 |title=Dr. Craig Spencer, New York Ebola Patient, Is Released |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/dr-craig-spencer-new-yorks-first-ebola-patient-is-released-1415725322 |work=The Wall Street Journal}} On October 25, the New York Post reported that an anonymous source had said that nurses at Bellevue had been calling in sick to avoid having to care for Spencer. A hospital spokesperson denied there was a sick out.{{Cite news |last=Schram |first=Jamie |last2=Celona |first2=Larry |date=October 25, 2014 |title=Bellevue staffers call in 'sick' after Ebola arrives |url=https://nypost.com/2014/10/25/many-bellevue-staffers-take-sick-day-in-ebola-panic/ |work=New York Post}} On November 1, his condition was upgraded to "stable",{{Cite news |last=Queally |first=James |date=November 1, 2014 |title=NYC Ebola patient improves; Oregon patient is 'low-risk' for virus |url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-ebola-new-york-oregon-20141101-story.html |access-date=November 3, 2014 |work=Los Angeles Times}} and on November 7 the hospital announced he was free of Ebola.{{Cite news |last=Hartocollis |first=Anemona |date=November 10, 2014 |title=Craig Spencer, New York Doctor With Ebola, Will Leave Bellevue Hospital |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/11/nyregion/craig-spencer-new-york-doctor-with-ebola-will-leave-bellevue-hospital.html |work=The New York Times}} Spencer was released from the hospital on November 11.{{Cite news |last=Malo, Sebastien |date=November 11, 2014 |title=Update 1-New York doctor now free of Ebola discharged from hospital |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/health-ebola-usa-new-york-idUSL2N0T10YT20141111 |access-date=November 11, 2014 |work=Reuters}} He was cheered and applauded by medical staff members, and hugged by the Mayor of New York, Bill de Blasio as he walked out of the hospital. The Mayor also declared: "New York City is Ebola free".

As a result of Dr. Spencer's Ebola case, U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), proposed an Ebola fund in an omnibus bill to be considered in fiscal year 2015. Schumer said the funds were needed to compensate New York City, as well as other cities treating Ebola patients, in the same way the federal government covers communities that suffer after a natural disaster. Schumer said Dr. Spencer's care at Bellevue Hospital involved around 100 health care workers. In addition, the city's health department established a 24-hour-a-day operation involving 500 staffers to keep track of the approximately 300 persons from West Africa hot spots who arrive in New York every day.{{Cite news |last=Perez |first=Chris |date=November 16, 2014 |title=Schumer to Obama: Reimburse NYC for $20M Ebola treatment |url=https://nypost.com/2014/11/16/schumer-to-obama-reimburse-nyc-for-20m-ebola-treatment/ |work=New York Post}}

File:Map of Ebola Outbreak - 1 October 2014.svg

By the time the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa was over in June 2016, seven Americans had been evacuated to the U.S. for treatment after contracting Ebola virus while working with medical teams trying to stop the epidemic.

{{Anchor|Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol}}Kent Brantly, a physician and medical director in Liberia for the aid group Samaritan's Purse, and co-worker Nancy Writebol were infected in July 2014, while working in Monrovia.{{Cite news |date=July 28, 2014 |title=Two Americans Stricken With Deadly Ebola Virus in Liberia |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/two-americans-stricken-deadly-ebola-virus-liberia-n166281 |access-date=August 2, 2014}}{{Cite news |date=August 4, 2014 |title=Ebola outbreak: U.S. missionary Nancy Writebol leaves Liberia Tuesday |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ebola-outbreak-u-s-missionary-nancy-writebol-leaves-liberia-tuesday-1.2726884 |access-date=August 4, 2014 |work=CBC News}}{{Cite news |date=August 8, 2014 |title=Ebola drug likely saved American patients |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/04/health/experimental-ebola-serum/index.html?hpt=hp_t2 |access-date=August 8, 2014 |publisher=CNN.com}} Both were flown to the United States at the beginning of August via the CDC's Aeromedical Biological Containment System for further treatment in Atlanta's Emory University Hospital.{{Cite news |last=Steenhuysen |first=Julie |title=Ebola patient coming to U.S. as aid workers' health worsens |url=http://news.msn.com/us/ebola-patient-coming-to-us-as-aid-workers-health-worsens?ocid=ansnews11 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808112750/http://news.msn.com/us/two-relief-workers-with-ebola-to-be-evacuated-to-united-states?ocid=ansnews11 |archive-date=August 8, 2014 |access-date=August 1, 2014 |work=MSN News}} On August 21, Brantly and Writebol recovered and were discharged.{{Cite web |title=American Ebola doc: 'I am thrilled to be alive' |url=https://news.yahoo.com/hospital-discuss-discharge-ebola-patients-100148319.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140821123100/http://news.yahoo.com/hospital-discuss-discharge-ebola-patients-100148319.html |archive-date=August 21, 2014 |access-date=August 21, 2014}} Brantly has since donated blood to three others with Ebola (Sacra, Mukpo and Pham).{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

{{Anchor|Rick Sacra}}On September 4, a Massachusetts physician, Rick Sacra, was airlifted from Liberia to be treated in Omaha, Nebraska at the Nebraska Medical Center. Working for Serving In Mission (SIM), he was the third U.S. missionary to contract Ebola.{{Cite news |date=September 5, 2014 |title=A Third US missionary with Ebola virus leaves Liberia |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/ebola/11076564/Third-US-missionary-with-Ebola-virus-leaves-Liberia.html |access-date=September 5, 2014 |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=London}} He thought that he probably contracted Ebola while performing a Caesarean section on a patient who had not been diagnosed with the disease. While in hospital, Sacra received a blood transfusion from Brantly, who had recently recovered from the disease. On September 25, Sacra was declared Ebola-free and released from the hospital.{{Cite news |date=September 25, 2014 |title=American Doctor With Ebola Is 'Grateful' Following Release From Hospital |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Health/american-doctor-ebola-grateful-release-hospital/story?id=25755775 |access-date=September 25, 2014 |work=ABC News}}

{{anchor|Unnamed patients}}On September 9, the fourth U.S. citizen who contracted the Ebola virus arrived at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta for treatment. On October 16, he released a statement saying he had improved and expected to be discharged in the near future. The doctor was identified as Ian Crozier, and according to the hospital, the sickest patient treated.{{Cite news |last=Grady |first=Denise |date=December 7, 2014 |title=An Ebola Doctor's Return From the Edge of Death |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/08/health/ebola-doctor-ian-crozier-return-from-the-edge-of-death-.html |access-date=December 8, 2014 |work=The New York Times}}{{Cite news |last=du Lac |first=J. Freedom |date=October 15, 2014 |title=Little mentioned patient at Emory expects to be discharged very soon free from the Ebola virus |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/10/15/little-mentioned-patient-at-emory-expects-to-be-discharged-very-soon-free-from-the-ebola-virus/ |work=The Washington Post}}{{Cite news |date=September 9, 2014 |title=Ebola patient arrives at Atlanta hospital |url=http://www.wcvb.com/health/us-ebola-patient-comes-to-atlanta-hospital/27952404 |access-date=September 10, 2014 |publisher=WCVB Boston}} He was scheduled to receive a blood or serum transfusion from a British man who had recently recovered from the disease.{{Cite news |last=Addison |first=Stephen |date=September 18, 2014 |title=British Ebola survivor flies to United States for blood donation |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/health-ebola-usa-idUSL1N0RJ12U20140918 |access-date=September 25, 2014 |work=Reuters}} In addition, on September 21, a CDC employee, who showed no symptoms of the disease, was flown back to the United States as a preventive measure after low-risk exposure with a healthcare worker; he posed no risks to his family or the United States, and he is not known to have died.{{Cite news |date=September 25, 2014 |title=2014 Ebola Outbreak in West Africa-September 25, 2014 |url=https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-africa/index.html |access-date=September 28, 2014 |publisher=CDC}} On September 28, a fourth American doctor was admitted to National Institutes of Health hospital.{{Cite news |last=Maggie Fox |title=Possible Ebola Patient Arrives at U.S. NIH Lab |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/possible-ebola-patient-arrives-u-s-nih-lab-n213686 |access-date=September 30, 2014 |work=NBC News}}

{{Anchor|Ashoka Mukpo}}On October 2, NBC News photojournalist Ashoka Mukpo, covering the outbreak in Liberia, tested positive for Ebola after showing symptoms.[https://abcnews.go.com/Health/us-journalist-ebola-nebraska-treatment/story?id=25987193 "US Journalist Believes He Got Ebola While Cleaning Infected Car"], ABC News, October 6, 2014 Four other members of the NBC team, including physician Nancy Snyderman, were being closely monitored for symptoms.{{Cite news |title=US cameraman tests positive for Ebola |url=http://www.news24.com/World/News/US-journalist-tests-positive-for-Ebola-20141003 |access-date=October 3, 2014 |work=News24}} Mukpo was evacuated on October 6 to the University of Nebraska Medical Center for treatment in their isolation unit.[https://www.voanews.com/a/fifth-american-diagnosed-with-ebola-virus/2473914.html "Journalist With Ebola Being Evaluated at US Hospital"], Voice of America, October 6, 2014. On October 21, Mukpo was declared Ebola-free and allowed to return to his home in Rhode Island.{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=Alex |date=October 21, 2014 |title=NBC News Freelancer Ashoka Mukpo Declared Free of Ebola |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/nbc-news-freelancer-ashoka-mukpo-declared-free-ebola-n231061 |access-date=October 21, 2014 |website=NBC News}}

A government official in Sierra Leone announced on November 13, that a doctor from Sierra Leone, a permanent resident of the United States married to a U.S. citizen, would be transported to the Nebraska Medical Center for treatment for Ebola.{{Cite news |last=Cohen|first=Elizabeth |date=November 14, 2014 |title=Ebola patient from Sierra Leone heading to Nebraska |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/13/health/nebraska-ebola-patient/ |work=CNN}}{{Cite news |date=November 13, 2014 |title=Ebola outbreak: Doctor infected in Sierra Leone to be treated in Omaha, Nebraska |url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ebola-outbreak-doctor-infected-in-sierra-leone-to-be-treated-in-omaha-nebraska/ |work=CBS News}} The doctor, identified later as Martin Salia, became symptomatic while in Sierra Leone. His initial Ebola test came back negative, but his symptoms persisted. He attempted to treat his symptoms, which included vomiting and diarrhea, believing he had malaria. A second test for Ebola came back positive. His family expressed concern that the delay in diagnosis might have impacted his recovery.{{Cite news |last=Sieff |first=Kevin |date=November 17, 2014 |title=A doctor's mistaken Ebola test: 'We were celebrating. ... Then everything fell apart' |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/a-doctors-mistaken-ebola-test-we-were-celebrating--then-everything-fell-apart/2014/11/16/946a84da-6dd5-11e4-a2c2-478179fd0489_story.html |work=The Washington Post}} Salia arrived at Eppley Airfield in Omaha on November 15, and was transported to the Nebraska Medical Center. According to the team that assisted in the transport, he was critically ill and considered to be the sickest patient to be evacuated, but stable enough to fly.{{Cite news |date=November 15, 2014 |title=Martin Salia, Surgeon With Ebola, Arrives in Nebraska From Sierra Leone |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/16/us/martin-salia-taken-to-nebraska-medical-center-for-ebola-treatment.html |access-date=November 16, 2014 |work=The New York Times}} On November 17, Salia died from the disease. Dr. Philip Smith, medical director of the biocontainment unit at Nebraska Medical Center, said Salia's disease was already "extremely advanced" by the time he arrived in Omaha. By then, Salia's kidneys had failed and he was in acute respiratory distress. Salia's treatment included a blood plasma transfusion from an Ebola survivor, as well as the experimental drug ZMapp. Salia had been working as a general surgeon in Freetown, Sierra Leone when he fell ill. It was not clear when or where he had had contact with Ebola patients.{{Cite news |last=Goodnough |first=Abby |last2=Trenchard |first2=Tommy |date=November 17, 2014 |title=Doctor Being Treated for Ebola in Omaha Dies |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/18/us/martin-salia-omaha-ebola-dead.html |work=The New York Times}}

A U.S. clinician contracted Ebola while working in Port Loko, Sierra Leone. He collapsed in the hospital and colleagues who assisted him were monitored for exposure. He was diagnosed with Ebola on March 10, 2015, and medically evacuated to the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland on March 13.Fink, Sheri (March 13, 2015). [https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/14/world/africa/us-clinician-with-ebola-under-care-in-maryland.html "U.S. Clinician With Ebola Under Care in Maryland"], The New York Times. His condition was downgraded from serious to critical on March 16.[https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/ebola-patient-at-nih-worsens-now-in-critical-conditon/2015/03/16/32b87f20-cbff-11e4-a2a7-9517a3a70506_story.html Doctors treating patient with Ebola at NIH downgrade condition to critical], The Washington Post, Brady Dennis, March 16, 2015 The ten exposed colleagues were flown back to the U.S., going into isolation near the Ebola-rated hospitals at Nebraska, Georgia, and Maryland.[http://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/16/health/cdc-americans-ebola/ Americans exposed to Ebola patient return from Africa for monitoring], Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, March 16, 2015 On March 26, 2015, the NIH upgraded the medically evacuated health worker being treated in Bethesda from critical to serious. A further 16 volunteers were monitored for possible exposure.{{Cite magazine |last=Sifferlin |first=Alexandra |date=March 26, 2015 |title=American Patient With Ebola Has Condition Upgraded |url=https://time.com/3760301/american-ebola-patient-improving/ |access-date=March 27, 2015 |magazine=Time}} On April 9, 2015, the clinician was upgraded to good condition and discharged.{{Cite web |date=July 20, 2015 |title=Patient admitted with Ebola virus disease discharged from NIH Clinical Center |url=https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/patient-admitted-ebola-virus-disease-discharged-nih-clinical-center |website=National Institutes of Health (NIH)}} He was treated by Dr. Anthony Fauci, who later said he was "the sickest person he had ever treated, who recovered." This patient revealed his identity in late 2019 as Preston Gorman, a physician assistant. {{Cite web |title=He survived Ebola—but the worst was yet to come |url=https://www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2020/01/29/ebola}}{{Cite web |date=April 2020 |title=PA Diagnosed with Ebola Suffers Trauma After Long Isolation |url=https://www.aapa.org/news-central/2020/04/pa-diagnosed-with-ebola-suffers-trauma-after-long-isolation/}}

File:Monrovia Medical Unit October 8 2014.jpg.]]

{{Main|Operation United Assistance}}

The U.S. military released plans to send up to 4,000 troops to West Africa to establish treatment centers starting September 29. The troops are tasked with building modular hospitals known as Expeditionary Medical Support Systems (EMEDS). Plans included building a 25-bed hospital for health care workers and 17 treatment centers with 100 beds each in Liberia.{{Cite news |last=du Lac |first=J. Freedom |date=October 13, 2014 |title=The U.S. military's new enemy: Ebola. Operation United Assistance is now underway. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/09/30/the-u-s-military-forces-fighting-the-war-on-ebola/ |work=The Washington Post}} By the end of September 2014 150 military personnel were helping USAID in the capital, Monrovia.{{Cite web |title=News Archive |url=https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/ |website=U.S. Department of Defense}}

U.S. Army chief of staff Ray Odierno ordered on October 27 a 21-day quarantine of all soldiers returning from Operation United Assistance. Up to 12 soldiers were quarantined in a U.S. base in Italy.{{Cite web |last=ABC News |title=US Army to Quarantine Troops Who Were Fighting Ebola |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Health/us-army-quarantine-troops-fighting-ebola/story?id=26486775 |website=ABC News}}

Since 2007, US hospitals have relied on CDC infection control protocols to contain Ebola virus disease. Until October 20, 2014, the CDC guidelines allowed hospitals wide latitude to select gear based on interaction between healthcare workers and patients and on the mode of transmission of the disease being handled. The guidelines suggested gowns with "full coverage of the arms and body front, from neck to the mid-thigh or below, will ensure that clothing and exposed upper body areas are protected", and additionally recommend masks and goggles.{{Cite news |date=October 15, 2014 |title=With Ebola cases, CDC zeros in on lapses in protocol, protective gear |url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-ebola-protocols-20141015-story.html |access-date=October 16, 2014 |work=Los Angeles Times}}{{Cite web |title=Element IV: Personal Protective Equipment |url=https://www.atrainceu.com/course-module/2236568-120_new-york-infection-control-module-06 |access-date=October 16, 2014}}

Public health expert Sean G. Kaufman said that many American hospitals improperly trained their personnel to handle Ebola cases because they were following federal guidelines that were too lax. US officials abruptly changed their guidelines on October 14. The New York Times stated that this was an effective acknowledgment that there were problems with the procedures for protecting health care workers. Kaufman, who oversaw infection control at Emory University Hospital while it treated Ebola patients, has said the previous CDC guidelines were "absolutely irresponsible and dead wrong". Kaufman called to warn the agency about its lax guidelines but, according to Kaufman, "They kind of blew me off."{{Cite news |last=McNeil |first=Donald G. Jr |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Lax U.S. guidelines on Ebola led to poor hospital training, experts say |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/16/us/lax-us-guidelines-on-ebola-led-to-poor-hospital-training-experts-say.html |work=The New York Times}}

A Doctors Without Borders representative, whose organization has been treating Ebola patients in Africa, criticized a CDC poster for lax guidelines on containing Ebola, saying, "It doesn't say anywhere that it's for Ebola. I was surprised that it was only one set of gloves, and the rest bare hands. It seems to be for general cases of infectious disease."

The national nursing union National Nurses United criticized the CDC for making the guidelines voluntary. There were complaints at the Texas hospital that healthcare professionals had to use tape to cover their exposed necks. According to Frieden, the CDC is appointing a hospital site manager to oversee Ebola containment efforts and are making "intensive efforts" to retrain and supervise staff.

On October 14, the WHO reported that 125 contacts in the United States were being traced and monitored.[http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/136508/1/roadmapsitrep15Oct2014.pdf?ua=1 Ebola Response Roadmap Update-October 15, 2014], World Health Organization, who.int. On October 20, the CDC updated its guidance on personal protective equipment with new detailed instructions that include specifying that no skin should be exposed and adding extensive instructions for donning and doffing the equipment.{{Cite web |title=Procedures for PPE |url=https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/procedures-for-ppe.html |access-date=October 21, 2014 |website=www.cdc.gov |publisher=CDC}} On October 20 CDC updated its guidance to add clarification that Ebola may spread through wet droplets such as sneezes.{{Cite web |title=Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Hospitalized Patients with Known or Suspected Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever in U.S. Hospitals – Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever – CDC |url=https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/infection-prevention-and-control-recommendations.html |access-date=October 30, 2014}}{{Cite news |last=Fredericks |first=Bob |date=October 29, 2014 |title=CDC admits droplets from a sneeze could spread Ebola |url=https://nypost.com/2014/10/29/cdc-admits-droplets-from-a-sneeze-could-spread-ebola/ |access-date=October 30, 2014 |work=New York Post}}{{Cite web |title=CDC admits Ebola can be passed to others by sneezing |url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/oct/29/cdc-admits-ebola-can-be-passed-to-others-by-sneezi/ |access-date=October 30, 2014 |website=The Washington Times}}

In mid-October 2014, President Barack Obama appointed Ron Klain as the "Ebola response coordinator" of the United States. Klain is a lawyer who previously served as chief of staff to vice presidents Al Gore and Joe Biden.{{Cite news |last=Kuhnhenn |first=Jim |date=October 17, 2014 |title=President Obama appoints Ebola 'czar' |url=http://wpri.com/2014/10/17/president-obama-appoints-ebola-response-coordinator |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141017190406/http://wpri.com/2014/10/17/president-obama-appoints-ebola-response-coordinator/ |archive-date=October 17, 2014 |access-date=October 17, 2014 |work=AP News}} Klain had no medical or health care experience.{{Cite news |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Obama's New Ebola 'Czar' Does Not Have Medical, Health Care Background |url=http://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/10/17/obamas-new-ebola-czar-does-not-have-medical-health-care-background |access-date=October 17, 2014 |publisher=CBS DC}} After criticism, Obama said, "It may make sense for us to have one person ... so that after this initial surge of activity, we can have a more regular process just to make sure that we're crossing all the T's and dotting all the I's going forward". Klain reported to Homeland Security Adviser Lisa Monaco and National Security Advisor Susan Rice.{{Cite news |last=Davis |first=Julie Hirschfeld |last2=Shear |first2=Michael D. |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Ron Klain, Chief of Staff to 2 Vice Presidents, Is Named Ebola Czar |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/18/us/ron-klain-chief-of-staff-to-2-vice-presidents-is-named-ebola-czar.html |access-date=October 17, 2014 |work=The New York Times}}{{Cite news |last=Loney |first=Jim |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Obama appoints Ebola czar; Texas health worker isolated on ship |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-ebola-usa-idUSKCN0I61BO20141017 |access-date=October 17, 2014 |work=Reuters}}{{Cite news |last=Tapper |first=Jake |date=October 19, 2014 |title=First on CNN: Obama will name Ron Klain as Ebola Czar |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/17/politics/ebola-czar-ron-klain/index.html |access-date=October 17, 2014 |publisher=CNN}}{{Cite news |last=Lavender |first=Paige |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Obama To Appoint Ron Klain As Ebola Czar |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/17/ron-klain-ebola-czar_n_6003108.html |access-date=October 17, 2014 |work=The Huffington Post}} Klain did not coordinate with hospitals and the United States Public Health Service, as this was the responsibility of Nicole Lurie, Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.{{Cite news |last=Kelley Beaucar Vlahos |date=October 17, 2014 |title=White House statement |url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/10/17/obama-to-name-ebola-czar |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141027033123/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/10/17/obama-to-name-ebola-czar |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 27, 2014 |access-date=October 23, 2014 |work=Fox News}} President Barack Obama attempted to calm public fears by hugging nurse Nina Pham who had been cured of Ebola.{{Cite news |title=Barack Obama 'not at all concerned' about hugging cured Ebola patient – video |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/video/2014/oct/25/barack-obama-hugging-cured-ebola-patient-dallas-nurse-nina-pham-video |access-date=October 26, 2014 |work=The Guardian}}

President Obama announced the formation of rapid response teams to travel to hospitals with newly diagnosed patients. A second set of teams will prep hospitals in cities deemed most likely to see an Ebola virus case. Three of those teams are already operating. In announcing the formation of the teams, President Obama explained, "We want a rapid response team, a SWAT team essentially, from the CDC to be on the ground as quickly as possible, hopefully within 24 hours, so that they are taking the local hospital step by step through what needs to be done." The CDC has developed two sets of teams, identified by the acronyms CERT (CDC Ebola Response Team) and FAST (Facility Assessment and Support Teams). The CERTs have 10 to 20 people each, who can be sent to a hospital with a suspected and/or laboratory confirmed Ebola virus case. The teams are drawn from 100 CDC workers and others. The FAST teams assist hospitals that have indicated they are willing to take on Ebola cases.{{Cite web |title=CDC Details New Ebola Response and Prep Teams |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/cdc-details-ebola-response-prep-teams-26403021?singlePage=true. |website=ABC News}}

File:Ebola screening at Chicago's O'Hare airport.jpg at Chicago's O'Hare airport]]

Starting in October 2014, U.S. government officials began questioning airplane passengers and screening them for fever at five U.S. airports: John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, O'Hare International Airport in Illinois, Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia, and Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia. Combined, these airports receive more than 94% of passengers from Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, the three countries most affected by Ebola.{{Cite news |last=Sabrina Tavernise |last2=Michael D. Shear |date=October 8, 2014 |title=U.S. to Begin Ebola Screenings at 5 Airports |url=https://nytimes.com/2014/10/09/us/us-to-begin-ebola-screenings-at-5-airports.html |access-date=October 12, 2014 |work=The New York Times}}{{Cite magazine |last=Zeke J. Miller |last2=Alexandra Sifferlin |date=October 8, 2014 |title=U.S. to Screen Passengers From West Africa for Ebola at 5 Airports |url=https://time.com/3482094/ebola-us-west-africa-airports/ |access-date=October 12, 2014 |magazine=Time}}

Although no plans have been announced for other airports, screening in the U.S. represents a second layer of protection since passengers are already being screened upon exiting these three countries. However, the risk can never be eliminated.{{Cite news |last=Karen Matthews |date=October 11, 2014 |title=Stepped-up Ebola screening starts at NYC airport |url=http://bigstory.ap.org/article/69533682f72f4d72aed9c6fd4d295bea/stepped-ebola-screening-starting-nyc-airport |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011150205/http://bigstory.ap.org/article/69533682f72f4d72aed9c6fd4d295bea/stepped-ebola-screening-starting-nyc-airport |archive-date=October 11, 2014 |access-date=October 12, 2014 |work=AP.org |quote='Already there are 100 percent of the travelers leaving the three infected countries are being screened on exit. Sometimes multiple times temperatures are checked along that process,' Dr. Martin Cetron, director of the Division of Global Migration and Quarantine for the federal Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, said at a briefing at Kennedy ... The screening will be expanded over the next week to New Jersey's Newark Liberty, Washington Dulles, Chicago O'Hare and Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta.}} On October 21, the Department of Homeland Security announced that all passengers from Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea will be required to fly into one of these five airports.{{Cite news |date=October 21, 2014 |title=DHS imposes new restrictions on travelers from Ebola-stricken countries |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dhs-imposes-new-restrictions-on-travelers-from-ebola-stricken-countries |access-date=October 22, 2014 |publisher=Fox News}} On October 23, the CDC announced that all passengers from these countries would receive 21-day monitoring.{{Cite news |last=McNeil |first=Donald |date=October 22, 2014 |title=U.S. Plans 21-Day Watch of Travelers From Ebola-Hit Nations |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/23/health/us-to-monitor-travelers-from-ebola-hit-nations-for-21-days.html |access-date=October 23, 2014 |work=The New York Times}}

A physician with the WHO, Aileen Marty, who had spent 31 days in Nigeria, criticized the complete lack of screening for Ebola on her recent return to the United States through Miami International Airport on October 12.{{citation needed|date=May 2017}}

There have also been calls by congressional leaders, including U.S. representative Ed Royce, Chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee, and U.S. representative Michael McCaul of Texas, Chair of the Homeland Security Committee, to suspend issuing visas to travelers from the affected West African countries, including Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea.{{Cite news |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Lawmakers call to halt visas to travelers from Ebola-infected nations |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/lawmakers-call-to-halt-visas-to-travelers-from-ebola-infected-nations/ |access-date=October 27, 2014 |work=Fox News}}{{Cite news |last=Bart Jansen |date=October 15, 2014 |title=Republicans call for West Africa travel ban to curb Ebola |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/10/15/ebola-travel-ban-republicans-shuster-thune-cdc-frieden/17318165 |access-date=October 26, 2014 |publisher=usatoday.com}}

File:USA-Ebola-quarantine-regs.svg

On October 7, 2014, Connecticut governor Dannel Malloy signed an order authorizing the mandatory quarantine for 21 days of anyone, even if asymptomatic, who had direct contact with Ebola patients.{{Cite web |title=Malloy signs Ebola emergency declaration |url=http://wtnh.com/2014/10/07/malloy-signs-ebola-emergency-declaration/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141026044022/http://wtnh.com/2014/10/07/malloy-signs-ebola-emergency-declaration/ |archive-date=October 26, 2014 |access-date=October 26, 2014 |publisher=WTNH}}{{Cite news |last=Anemoma Hartocollis |last2=Emma G. Fitzsimmons |date=October 25, 2014 |title=Tested Negative for Ebola, Nurse Criticizes Her Quarantine |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/26/nyregion/nurse-in-newark-tests-negative-for-ebola.html |access-date=October 26, 2014 |work=The New York Times}} Nine people were quarantined on October 22, in accordance with the Connecticut order.{{Cite web |date=October 22, 2014 |title=Officials: A Family of six is Quarantined In West Haven After Returning From West Africa. Three other individuals also are being quarantined |url=http://www.courant.com/breaking-news/hc-west-haven-quarantine-1023-20141022-story.html |access-date=October 26, 2014 |website=Hartford Courant}}

At a joint news conference on October 24, New York governor Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey governor Chris Christie announced that they were imposing a mandatory 21-day quarantine on all air travelers returning to New York and New Jersey from West Africa who have had contact with Ebola patients. In explaining the move from the CDC's voluntary quarantine to a state ordered mandatory one, Cuomo cited the case of Dr. Spencer. "In a region like this, you go out three times, you ride the subway, you ride the bus, you could affect hundreds of people." Cuomo praised Dr. Spencer's work but stated, "He's a doctor and even he didn't follow the voluntary quarantine. Let's be honest."{{Cite news |date=October 24, 2014 |title=Travelers in contact with Ebola patients, including returning nurse with fever, now face mandatory 21-day quarantine in New York, New Jersey |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/mandatory-21-day-quarantine-travelers-risk-ebola-n-y-n-article-1.1986460 |access-date=October 25, 2014 |work=NY Daily News}}{{Cite news |last=Marchione |first=Marilynn |last2=Stobbe |first2=Mike |date=October 24, 2014 |title=NY, NJ Order Ebola Quarantine for Doctors, Others |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/1st-ebola-case-nyc-quarantined-26416922 |access-date=October 25, 2014 |work=ABC News |agency=Associated Press}}

Governors Cuomo and Christie stated that their two states needed to go beyond the federal CDC guidelines. Cuomo said Dr. Spencer's activity in the days before his diagnosis showed the guidelines, which includes urging health care workers and others who have had contact with Ebola patients to voluntarily quarantine themselves, were not enough.

Late on October 26, Cuomo modified the state's quarantine procedure, stating that people entering New York who have had contact with Ebola patients in West Africa will be quarantined in their homes for the 21 days, with twice daily checks to ensure their health has not changed and that they are complying with the order, and would receive some compensation for lost wages, if any.Matt Flegenheimer, Michael D. Shear, and Michael Barbaro, [https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/27/nyregion/ebola-quarantine.html "Ebola quarantine guidelines for NY and NJ"], The New York Times, October 27, 2014. President Obama and his staff had been attempting to persuade Cuomo, Christie, and the government of Illinois{{Cite news |last=Aamer Madhani |last2=David Jackson |date=October 26, 2014 |title=White House working on new Ebola guidelines |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/theoval/2014/10/26/obama-ebola-quarantine-samantha-power-anthony-fauci/17955781/ |access-date=November 7, 2014 |work=USA Today}} to reverse their mandatory quarantines.

Illinois governor Pat Quinn issued a similar quarantine authorization the same day as New York and New Jersey initially did, with Florida governor Rick Scott on October 25, authorizing mandatory twice daily monitoring for 21 days of people identified as coming from countries affected by Ebola.{{Cite news |date=October 25, 2014 |title=Illinois Ebola quarantine |url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-illinois-ebola-quarantine-20141025-story.html |access-date=October 26, 2014 |work=Chicago Tribune}}[http://abc7news.com/health/quarantined-nurse-being-isolated-is-inhumane/366391 Florida Governor Rick Scott on October 25 authorized mandatory twice daily monitoring for 21 days of people identified as coming from countries affected by Ebola] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141026195828/http://abc7news.com/health/quarantined-nurse-being-isolated-is-inhumane/366391/ |date=October 26, 2014 }}, abc7news.com; accessed October 26, 2014. Illinois health officials later said that only people at high risk of Ebola exposure, such as not wearing protective gear near Ebola patients, will be quarantined.{{Cite news |date=October 27, 2014 |title=Illinois clarifies mandatory 21-day Ebola quarantine |url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/health/ct-ebola-illinois-quarantine-met-20141027-story.html |access-date=October 28, 2014 |work=Chicago Tribune}}

Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Georgia have all authorized mandatory twice daily health monitoring and/or temperature reporting for 21 days for people exposed to people with Ebola. Virginia has also implemented mandatory twice daily temperature reporting and daily monitoring from health authorities, but has also authorized mandatory quarantine for higher risk patients.{{Cite news |last=Weiner |first=Rachel |date=October 27, 2014 |title=Virginia and Maryland increase Ebola monitoring for travelers from West Africa |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-increases-ebola-monitoring-for-travelers-from-west-africa/2014/10/27/bb2241ec-5ddd-11e4-9f3a-7e28799e0549_story.html |access-date=October 28, 2014 |work=The Washington Post}}{{Cite news |date=October 24, 2014 |title=Protocol outlined for Pennsylvania Ebola monitoring |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/news/health/2014/10/24/Protocol-outlined-for-Pennsylvania-Ebola-monitoring/stories/201410240200 |access-date=October 28, 2014 |work=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette}} California mandated a 21-day quarantine for all health workers who have had contact with Ebola patients.{{Cite news |last=Morin |first=Monte |last2=Adolfo Flores |date=October 29, 2014 |title=State orders quarantine for workers who had contact with Ebola |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ebola-california-20141030-story.html |access-date=October 30, 2014 |work=Los Angeles Times}}

File:Ebola isolation tent at University Hospital in Newark, New Jersey.jpg in New Jersey to quarantine Kaci Hickox]]

Kaci Hickox, an American nurse who treated Ebola patients in Sierra Leone became the first person placed under the new mandatory quarantine rules on her arrival at Newark Liberty International Airport, in New Jersey. A low-accuracy (forehead) thermometer indicated Hickox developed a fever on Friday night and was taken to University Hospital in Newark. She later tested negative for the Ebola virus but remained quarantined in a medical tent. Hickox and Doctors Without Borders criticized the condition of the quarantine in a tent with a bed and a portable toilet, but without shower facility.{{Cite news |last=Bashan |first=Yoni |last2=West |first2=Melanie Grayce |last3=Haddon |first3=Heather |date=October 26, 2014 |title=Nurse Detained in New Jersey for Ebola Calls Conditions 'Really Inhumane' |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/nurse-detained-in-new-jersey-for-ebola-calls-conditions-really-inhumane-1414352575 |access-date=December 7, 2014 |work=The Wall Street Journal}} Hickox criticized her treatment as inhumane.{{Cite news |last=Cohen |first=Elizabeth |last2=Holland |first2=Leslie |last3=Ellis |first3=Ralph |date=October 27, 2014 |title=Nurse describes Ebola quarantine ordeal: 'I was in shock. Now I'm angry' |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/26/health/new-jersey-quarantined-nurse/ |access-date=December 7, 2014 |publisher=CNN}} The hospital responded that they tried their best to accommodate Hickox by allowing her to have computer access, cell phone, reading materials, and providing take-out food and drink.{{Cite news |last=Chappell |first=Bill |date=October 26, 2014 |title=Nurse Criticizes Quarantine After Negative Ebola Test, Hires Lawyer |url=https://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/10/26/359073978/nurse-aid-group-criticize-quarantine-after-negative-ebola-test |access-date=December 7, 2014 |publisher=NPR}} On October 27, after being symptom free for an additional 24-hour period, testing negative for Ebola, and after the state's quarantine policy was relaxed the night before, Hickox was released from quarantine in New Jersey.{{Cite web |date=October 27, 2014 |title=New Jersey Releases Nurse Quarantined for Suspected Ebola |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/new-jersey-releases-nurse-quarantined-suspected-ebola-n234661 |access-date=October 27, 2014 |website=NBC News}} She has filed suit.{{Cite web |title=Rutgers University–New Brunswick |url=http://www.northjersey.com/news/christie-and-nurse-who-was-quarantined-over-ebola-fears-face-hurdles-in-quarantine-lawsuit-1.1445468}}

Hickox was escorted out of New Jersey and into Maine the following day by a private convoy of SUVs.{{Cite news |last=Shayna Jacobs |last2=Sasha Goldstein |last3=Corky Siemaszko |date=October 27, 2014 |title=Nurse Kaci Hickox heading for Maine after leaving New Jersey Ebola quarantine: officials |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/nurse-kaci-hickox-released-n-quarantine-officials-article-1.1988481 |access-date=May 8, 2015 |work=NY Daily News |location=New York}} Maine governor Paul LePage announced he was joining with his state's health department in seeking legal authority to enforce the quarantine after Hickox announced she would not comply with the isolation protocols in Maine. She left her house on October 29 and 30.{{Cite news |last=Michelle Kaske |date=October 29, 2014 |title=Maine Governor Seeks to Make Nurse Abide by Quarantine |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-29/nurse-kaci-hickox-says-she-won-t-follow-maine-s-ebola-quarantine.html |work=Bloomberg}} The governor said: "She's violated every promise she's made so far, so I can't trust her. I don't trust her."{{Cite web |last=Julia Bayly |last2=Jackie Farwell |date=October 31, 2014 |title=After Kaci Hickox wins court reprieve, LePage says he doesn't trust her |url=https://bangordailynews.com/2014/10/31/news/aroostook/judge-requires-monitoring-wont-ban-kaci-hickox-from-public-places-on-ebola-fears |website=Bangor Daily News}} A Maine judge ruled against a mandatory quarantine on October 31, but required Hickox to comply with "direct active monitoring", to coordinate her travel with Maine health officials, and to notify health officials if she develops symptoms of Ebola.{{Cite news |last=Ray Sanchez |last2=Catherine E. Shoichet |last3=Faith Karimi |date=October 31, 2014 |title=Maine judge rejects quarantine for nurse Kaci Hickox |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/31/health/us-ebola/index.html |access-date=November 1, 2014 |publisher=CNN}}

On October 29, Texas governor Rick Perry announced that a Texas nurse returning from Sierra Leone where she treated Ebola patients, had agreed to self-quarantine at her Austin home for 21 days following her return to Texas, and undergo frequent monitoring from state health officials. although she did not have any symptoms of Ebola virus. The nurse was not named to protect her privacy. Perry spoke with the nurse over the phone to thank her for work to fight Ebola.{{Cite web |date=October 29, 2014 |title=Nurse working with Ebola patients lands at ABIA |url=https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/nurse-working-with-ebola-patients-lands-at-abia/260200027 |publisher=KVUE}}

U.S. Army Chief of Staff Ray Odierno also ordered on October 27 a 21-day quarantine of all soldiers returning from Operation United Assistance in Liberia. As many as 12 soldiers were quarantined in a U.S. base in Italy.{{Cite web |last=Luis Martinez |date=October 27, 2014 |title=US Army to Quarantine Troops Who Were Fighting Ebola |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Health/us-army-quarantine-troops-fighting-ebola/story?id=26486775 |access-date=October 28, 2014 |website=ABC News}}

On November 13, 2014, President Obama issued a presidential memorandum, invoking a federal law to immunize contractors hired by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) from liability "with respect to claims, losses, or damage arising out of or resulting from exposure, in the course of performance of the contracts, to Ebola" during the emergency period.{{Cite web |date=November 13, 2014 |title=Presidential Memorandum – Authorizing the Exercise of Authority Under Public Law 85-804 |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2014/11/13/presidential-memorandum-authorizing-exercise-authority-under-public-law- |via=White House Press Office}}

There were numerous overreactions to the perceived threat of an Ebola outbreak, particularly on the part of school officials. On October 16, a building housing two schools in the Solon City School District near Cleveland, Ohio, was closed for a single day of disinfection procedures after finding that a staff member may have been on the aircraft that Amber Vinson used on a previous flight.{{Cite news |last=WKYC Staff |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Solon closes two schools Thursday as Ebola precaution |url=http://www.wkyc.com/story/news/local/cuyahoga-county/2014/10/16/solon-school-closings/17340989/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141016133515/http://www.wkyc.com/story/news/local/cuyahoga-county/2014/10/16/solon-school-closings/17340989/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 16, 2014 |access-date=October 16, 2014 |work=wkyc.com}} Another school in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District was disinfected overnight due to similar concerns but remained open. In both cases, affected staff were sent home until cleared by health officials. School officials said that they had been assured by city health officials that there was no risk and that the disinfection was "strictly precautionary".{{Cite news |last=Kara Sutyak |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Ebola precautions taken at Cranwood School in Cleveland |url=http://fox8.com/2014/10/16/ebola-precautions-taken-at-cranwood-school-in-cleveland/ |access-date=October 16, 2014 |work=fox8}} Three schools in the Belton Independent School District in Belton, Texas, were also closed. Infectious disease experts considered these closures to be an overreaction and were concerned that it would frighten the public into believing that Ebola is a greater danger than it actually is.{{Cite news |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Ohio, Texas schools close amid Ebola scare |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/10/16/solon-ohio-ebola-school-closings/17343431/ |access-date=October 16, 2014 |work=USA Today |quote=Three Central Texas schools were closed Thursday over health concerns surrounding two students who traveled on a Monday flight with Vinson.}}

In Hazlehurst, Mississippi, in response to numerous parents keeping their children from attending school, a principal at Hazlehurst Middle School, agreed to take personal vacation time after he had traveled to Zambia, a country with no current Ebola cases and {{Convert|3000|mi|km|abbr=off}} away from West Africa.{{Cite web |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Kids pulled out of class over concerns about principal's trip to Zambia |url=http://www.wapt.com/news/hazlehurst-parents-concerned-with-principals-trip-to-africa/29135134 |access-date=October 19, 2014 |publisher=WAPT.com}}{{Cite news |last=Mendoza |first=Dorrine |date=October 20, 2014 |title=Ebola hysteria: An epic, epidemic overreaction |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/20/health/ebola-overreaction/index.html |access-date=October 21, 2014 |work=CNN.com}}

File:NIH Clinical Center - Special Clinical Studies Unit.jpg Special Clinical Studies Unit, a specialized biocontainment unit. The negative-pressure anterooms on the left lead to negative-pressure patient rooms (not shown in the picture).{{Cite journal |date=February 2011 |title=Design of a Specialized Airborne-Infection-Isolation Suite |url=http://orf.od.nih.gov/policiesandguidelines/bioenvironmental/documents/specializedairborneinfectionisolationroom_508.pdf |journal=HPAC Engineering |pages=25–33 |access-date=November 15, 2014}}{{Cite web |title=Pre-application Webinar Agenda "Opportunities for Collaborative Research at the NIH Clinical Center" X02 (PAR-13-357) and U01 (PAR-13-358) |url=http://clinicalcenter.nih.gov/translational-research-resources/pdf/webinar_presentation.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140105023845/http://clinicalcenter.nih.gov/translational-research-resources/pdf/webinar_presentation.pdf |archive-date=January 5, 2014 |access-date=November 15, 2014 |publisher=NIH Office of Extramural Research}}]]

The United States has the capacity to isolate and manage 11 patients in four specialized biocontainment units. These include the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska, the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, St. Patrick Hospital and Health Sciences Center in Missoula, Montana and Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia.{{Cite web |last=ABC News |title=US Has Capacity for 11 Ebola Patients at Specialized Hospitals |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Health/us-capacity-11-ebola-patients-specialized-hospitals/story?id=26251721 |website=ABC News}}{{Cite web |last=Rob Chaney |date=September 30, 2014 |title=St. Patrick Hospital 1 of 4 sites in U.S. ready for Ebola patients |url=http://missoulian.com/news/local/st-patrick-hospital-of-sites-in-u-s-ready-for/article_da521772-4839-11e4-b266-4342d105e33f.html |access-date=October 8, 2014 |website=Missoulian.com}}{{Cite web |date=March 7, 2005 |title=CDC director at today's Biocontainment Unit unveiling |url=https://www.unmc.edu/news.cfm?match=2050 |website=University of Nebraska Medical Center}}

{{Main|Ebola virus disease treatment research}}

There is as yet no medication for Ebola approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, has stated that the scientific community is still in the early stages of understanding how infection with the Ebola virus can be treated and prevented.Roberts, Dan – [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/16/ebola-congress-hearing-cdc-director News World news Ebola CDC director warns Ebola like 'forest fire' as Congress readies for hearing] – Ebola crisis live updates – The Guardian. Retrieved October 16, 2014. There is no cure or specific treatment that is currently approved.{{Cite journal |vauthors=Choi JH, Croyle MA |date=December 2013 |title=Emerging targets and novel approaches to Ebola virus prophylaxis and treatment |journal=BioDrugs |volume=27 |issue=6 |pages=565–83 |doi=10.1007/s40259-013-0046-1 |pmc=3833964 |pmid=23813435}} However, survival is improved by early supportive care with rehydration and symptomatic treatment. Treatment is primarily supportive in nature.{{Cite journal |vauthors=Clark DV, Jahrling PB, Lawler JV |date=September 2012 |title=Clinical management of filovirus-infected patients |journal=Viruses |volume=4 |issue=9 |pages=1668–86 |doi=10.3390/v4091668 |pmc=3499825 |pmid=23170178 |doi-access=free}} A number of experimental treatments are being considered for use in the context of this outbreak, and are currently or will soon undergo clinical trials.Briggs, Helen (August 7, 2014) [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-28663217 "Ebola: Experimental drugs and vaccines"], BBC News, Health, Retrieved August 8, 2014{{Cite news |last=Rush |first=James |date=November 13, 2014 |title=Ebola virus: Clinical trials of three new treatments for disease to start in West Africa |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/ebola-virus-clinical-trials-of-three-new-treatments-for-disease-to-start-in-west-africa-9857729.html |access-date=November 13, 2014 |work=The Independent |location=London}}

In late August 2014, both Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol became the first people to be given the experimental drug ZMapp. They both recovered, but there was no confirmation or proof that the drug was a factor.[http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/what-cured-ebola-patients-kent-brantly-nancy-writebol-n186131 "What Cured Ebola Patients Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol?"], NBC News, August 21, 2014 A Spanish priest with Ebola had taken ZMapp but died afterward.{{Cite news |last=Moffett, Matt |date=August 13, 2014 |title=Ebola Virus: Infected Priest Has Died in Spain |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/missionary-doctor-infected-with-ebola-dies-in-madrid-1407835487 |access-date=October 26, 2014 |work=The Wall Street Journal}} Up until that time, ZMapp had only been tested on primates and looked promising, causing no serious side effects and protecting the animals from infection.[https://time.com/3533565/12-answers-to-ebolas-hard-questions/?pcd=hp-magmod "12 Answers To Ebola's Hard Questions"], Time, October 23, 2014. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has donated $150,000 to help Amgen increase its production, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has asked a number of centers to also increase production.[http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/blog/health-care-inc/2014/10/amgen-works-with-gates-foundation-to-ramp-up-ebola.html "Amgen works with Gates Foundation to ramp up Ebola drug ZMapp production"], Puget Sound Business Journal, October 20, 2014.

There have been at least two promising treatments for those already infected. The first is brincidofovir, an experimental antiviral drug, which was given to Duncan, Mukpo, and Spencer.[http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/dr-craig-spencer-experimental-anti-viral-drug-brincidofovir-fight-ebola-officials-article-1.1986996 "Ebola patient Dr. Craig Spencer enters 'next phase' of illness despite treatment with experimental drug Brincidofovir"], NY Daily News, October 25, 2014

Treatment using a transfusion of plasma from Ebola survivors, a form of "passive immunotherapy",[http://today.uconn.edu/blog/2014/10/immune-response-key-to-beating-ebola/ "Immune Response Key to Beating Ebola"], UConn Today, Univ. of Connecticut, October 30, 2014 since it contains antibodies able to fight the virus, has been used with apparent success on a number of patients. Survivor Kent Brantly donated his blood to Rick Sacra, Ashoka Mukpo and nurse Nina Pham.[https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/10/08/ebola-survivor-kent-brantly-donates-blood-to-help-treat-nbc-cameraman-ashoka-mukpo/ "Ebola survivor Kent Brantly donates blood to help treat NBC cameraman Ashoka Mukpo"], The Washington Post, October 8, 2014[https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/10/14/the-decades-old-treatment-that-may-save-a-young-dallas-nurse-infected-with-ebola "The decades-old treatment that may save a young Dallas nurse infected with Ebola"], The Washington Post, October 14, 2014 The World Health Organization (WHO) has made it a priority to try the treatment, and has been telling affected countries how to do it.[https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/04/health/use-of-ebola-survivors-blood-as-possible-treatment-gains-support.html "A Plan to Use Survivors' Blood for Ebola Treatment in Africa"], The New York Times, October 3, 2014

{{Main|Ebola vaccine}}

Many Ebola vaccine candidates had been developed in the decade before 2014, but none has yet been approved for clinical use in humans.{{Cite journal |last=Alison P. Galvani with three others |date=August 21, 2014 |title=Ebola Vaccination: If Not Now, When? |journal=Annals of Internal Medicine |volume=161 |issue=10 |pages=749–50 |doi=10.7326/M14-1904 |pmc=4316820 |pmid=25141813}} Several promising vaccine candidates have been shown to protect nonhuman primates (usually macaques) against lethal infection, and some are now going through the clinical trial process.{{Cite journal |vauthors=Fausther-Bovendo H, Mulangu S, Sullivan NJ |date=June 2012 |title=Ebolavirus vaccines for humans and apes |journal=Curr Opin Virol |volume=2 |issue=3 |pages=324–29 |doi=10.1016/j.coviro.2012.04.003 |pmc=3397659 |pmid=22560007}}{{Cite news |last=Walsh |first=Fergus |date=January 6, 2015 |title=Ebola: New vaccine trial begins |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-30696018 |access-date=January 6, 2015 |agency=BBC News}}

In late October 2014, Canada planned to ship 800 vials of an experimental vaccine to the WHO in Geneva, the drug having been licensed by NewLink Genetics Corporation, of Iowa. British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline also announced it had expedited research and development of a vaccine, which, if successful, could be available in 2015.{{Cite news |date=October 18, 2014 |title=Americans 'can't give in to hysteria or fear' over Ebola: Obama |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-ebola-usa-idUSKCN0I61BO20141018 |work=Reuters}} Although it's still unknown which ones will be approved, WHO hopes to have millions of vaccine doses ready sometime in 2015, and expects that five more experimental vaccines will start being tested in March 2015.[https://www.bbc.com/news/health-29756301 "WHO: Millions of Ebola Vaccine Doses Ready in 2015"], BBC News, October 24, 2014

In December 2019, the first Ebola vaccine was approved.{{Cite web |last=Commissioner |first=Office of the |date=2020-03-24 |title=First FDA-approved vaccine for the prevention of Ebola virus disease, marking a critical milestone in public health preparedness and response |url=https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/first-fda-approved-vaccine-prevention-ebola-virus-disease-marking-critical-milestone-public-health |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=FDA |language=en}} rVSV-ZEBOV, otherwise known as Ervebo, is a vaccine for adults that prevents the Zaire ebolavirus.{{Cite web |last=McKee |first=Selina |date=2019-12-23 |title=US approves Merck's Ebola vaccine |url=https://www.pharmatimes.com/news/us_approves_mercks_ebola_vaccine_1320832 |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=PharmaTimes |language=en}}

{{anchor|Rejection of student admissions}}In October 2014, Navarro College, a two-year public school located in Texas, received media attention for admission rejection letters sent to two prospective students from Nigeria. The letters informed the applicants that the college was "not accepting international students from countries with confirmed Ebola cases".{{Cite web |last=Dan Mangan |date=October 15, 2014 |title=Texas College Rejects Nigerian Applicants, Cites Ebola Cases – NBC News |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/texas-college-rejects-nigerian-applicants-cites-ebola-cases-n226291 |access-date=October 17, 2014 |website=NBCNews.com}} On October 16, Navarro's Vice-President Dewayne Gragg issued a statement confirming that there had indeed been a decision to "postpone our recruitment in those nations that the Center for Disease Control and the U.S. State Department have identified as at risk".{{Cite news |title=Navarro College says in a new statement it will postpone recruitment of students from countries at risk for Ebola – Corsicana Daily Sun: Local News |url=http://www.corsicanadailysun.com/news/local_news/article_16f89386-5569-11e4-ad23-27fb5a2c77f5.html |access-date=October 17, 2014 |work=Corsicana Daily Sun}} Nigeria's outbreak was among the least severe in West Africa and was considered over by the WHO on October 20; the Nigerian health ministry had previously announced on September 22 that there were no confirmed cases of Ebola within the country.{{citation needed|date=June 2016}}

{{anchor|Speaking invitations withdrawn}}In October 2014, the S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University withdrew an invitation it had extended to Pulitzer Prize winning photojournalist Michel du Cille because he'd returned three weeks earlier from covering the Ebola outbreak in Liberia.{{Cite news |last=Bever |first=Lindsay |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Syracuse University disinvites Washington Post photographer because he was in Liberia 3 weeks ago |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/10/17/syracuse-university-disinvites-washington-post-photographer-3-weeks-after-he-returned-from-liberia/ |access-date=October 18, 2014 |work=The Washington Post}}{{Cite news |last=Kingkade |first=Tyloe |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Colleges Isolate, Disinvite People Out Of An 'Abundance Of Caution' Over Ebola |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/17/colleges-ebola_n_6004072.html |access-date=October 18, 2014 |work=Huffington Post}} In October 2014, Case Western Reserve University withdrew their speaking invitation to Dr. Richard E. Besser, chief health editor at ABC News and former director of the CDC. Besser had recently returned from a trip to Liberia.{{Cite news |last=Rice |first=Chelsea |title=Ebola Today |url=https://www.boston.com/health/2014/10/17/ebola-today-cdc-expands-passenger-check-ins-before-flight/bp9pHrGGP6HoAYizUs0PzJ/story.html |access-date=October 18, 2014 |publisher=Boston.com}}{{Cite news |last=Besser |first=Richard E. |date=October 15, 2014 |title=Fight fear of ebola with the facts |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/richard-e-besser-fight-fear-of-ebola-with-the-facts/2014/10/15/dba7bd1e-5399-11e4-809b-8cc0a295c773_story.html |access-date=October 18, 2014 |work=The Washington Post}}

On October 17, Harvard University imposed limits on travel to Ebola-affected countries (Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia) for its students, staff, and faculty. All travel to these countries is "strongly discourage[d]", and such travel as part of a Harvard program requires approval from the provost.{{Cite web |date=October 16, 2014 |title=Harvard update on West Africa Ebola outbreak: October 2014 |url=http://hwpi.harvard.edu/files/provost/files/harvard_update_on_west_africa_ebola_outbreak_october_2014.pdf |access-date=October 24, 2014 |publisher=Harvard University: Office of the Provost}}

{{anchor|Ohio tightens security}}On October 25, CDC allowed state and local officials to set tighter control policies and Barbara Reynolds, a CDC spokeswoman released a statement saying "we will consider any measures that we believe have the potential to make the American people safer".{{Cite news |last=Spencer S. Hsu |last2=Nia-Malika HendersonSpencer S. Hsu |last3=Nia-Malika Henderson |date=October 25, 2014 |title=No mandatory Ebola quarantine for health workers coming to Washington area |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/no-mandatory-ebola-quarantine-for-health-workers-coming-to-washington-area/2014/10/25/71a9a8c8-5c68-11e4-bd61-346aee66ba29_story.html |access-date=October 25, 2014 |work=The Washington Post}} On November 1, Ohio tightened restrictions on people travelling to Western African countries impacted by Ebola.{{Cite news |last=Jen Christensen |title='Out of control': How the world reacted as Ebola spread |url=http://www.cnn.com/interactive/2014/11/health/ebola-outbreak-timeline/ |publisher=CNN}}Time magazine's 2014 Person of the Year issue honored health professionals dedicated to fighting Ebola, including Kent Brantly.{{Cite news |date=December 10, 2014 |title=Time Magazine Honors Ebola Fighters: Samaritan's Purse doctor Kent Brantly is among those honored as Time's Person of the Year |url=http://www.samaritanspurse.org/article/ebola-fighter-kent-brantly-honored-by-time/ |access-date=December 10, 2014}}

On October 28, future president Donald Trump tweeted that governors backing off from the Ebola quarantine would lead to more mayhem.{{Cite web |date=April 22, 2020 |title=Did Trump Criticize Governors for Backing off Ebola Quarantines in 2014? |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trump-criticize-governors-ebola/ |access-date=2020-05-04 |website=Snopes.com |language=en-US}} In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, these tweets were contrasted with Trump's then-opposition to mandatory quarantines.

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• Ebola virus epidemic in Guinea
• Ebola virus epidemic in Liberia
• Ebola virus epidemic in Nigeria
• Ebola virus epidemic in Sierra Leone
• Ebola virus disease in Spain
• List of Ebola outbreaks
• West Nile virus in the United States

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• {{Cite web |title=Report of the Independent Panel On HHS Ebola Response |url=http://www.phe.gov/Preparedness/responders/ebola/EbolaResponseReport/Documents/ebola-panel.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160712153727/http://www.phe.gov/Preparedness/responders/ebola/EbolaResponseReport/Documents/ebola-panel.pdf |archive-date=July 12, 2016 |access-date=July 13, 2016 |website=HHS.gov |publisher=Health and Human Services}}
• {{Cite web |title=Infection Prevention and Control for Ebola in Health Care Settings — West Africa and United States |url=http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/865913 |access-date=July 31, 2016 |website=www.medscape.com |publisher=Medscape}}
• {{Cite book |url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK401170/ |title=Personal Protective Equipment for Use in a Filovirus Disease Outbreak: Rapid Advice Guideline |date=2016 |publisher=World Health Organization |isbn=9789241549721 |pmid=27929622 |access-date=December 15, 2016}}

• [https://archive.today/20141013154814/http://www.stltoday.com/news/science/ebola-how-it-spreads/article_b5ae56ee-866f-5780-99c6-c7e748002909.html Ebola: How it spreads]
• [https://www.wsj.com/video/ebola-the-gear-worn-to-prevent-infection/74FC4123-CFE1-4534-B263-9212A313F768.html?mod=trending_now_video_4 What gear to wear for protection from Ebola infection]
• [https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/ Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever — CDC.gov]

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