Airlines and U.S. officials consider screening air travelers for Ebola

A worker in a hazardous material suit looks out from the apartment unit where a man diagnosed with the Ebola virus was staying in Dallas, Texas, October 5, 2014. [REUTERS]

Should American airports screen passengers to identify those who may have Ebola? Government officials and U.S. airlines are considering this, as public concern in the West grows after news of new cases affecting non-Africans.

"What we're looking to do is review these screening measures," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest at a press briefing. But there is no plan for a ban on travel to or from West African countries hit by the epidemic, he added. The U.S. does not want to slow down transport of supplies and personnel to combat the spread of Ebola. From Reuters:

The Airlines for America trade group separately said it would meet health and safety officials on Monday to discuss whether additional screening procedures anywhere in the world might help improve on those already in place.

People leaving Ebola-affected countries are asked to fill out a questionnaire on whether they have symptoms such as a high fever and whether or not they have had any contact with someone who was diagnosed with Ebola. In Liberia, at least, they also are scanned for fever.

NBC freelance cameraman Ashoka Mukpo who contracted Ebola in Liberia, is shown in this family photo released on October 6, 2014.

The first person to be diagnosed with Ebola on U.S. soil, Thomas Eric Duncan, remained in critical condition Monday in a Dallas hospital. President Obama today told reporters it is important to follow existing travel health protocols strictly. "But we're also going to be working on protocols to do additional passenger screening, both at the source and here in the United States," he said.

An ambulance transports Ashoka Mukpo, a freelance cameraman who contracted Ebola in Liberia, to the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska, October 6, 2014. [Reuters]