Rwanda is now screening U.S. visitors for Ebola


On Tuesday, Rwandan Health Minister Dr. Agnes Binagwaho said visitors coming from the U.S. and Spain will now be screened for Ebola upon arrival, ordered to report on their health while they are in the east African nation, and required to fill out a detailed form. Travelers who have been in Spain or the U.S. recently and have a fever will be denied entry to Rwanda.
"It is definitely extra work for us," Bingwaho said. "We have to ensure that all citizens or any other travelers arriving from the above-mentioned countries, including the U.S., have to be screened in an extra careful manner and follow up on them during their stay."
The U.S. and Spain are the two Western nations with Ebola transmissions; Rwanda — about 2,600 miles from the locus of the pandemic in Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone — hasn't had any reported cases of Ebola in the recent outbreak. That didn't stop parents at one New Jersey elementary school from forcing the school to keep two Rwandan students from enrolling last week because, as one parent put it, "anybody from that area should just stay there until all this stuff is resolved." Presumably, Rwanda's new precautions are unrelated to the New Jersey incident.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
How developed was Iran's nuclear program and what's left now?
Today's Big Question Israel and the United States have said different things about Iran's capabilities
-
The downsides of a 'forgotten' 401(k) and how to find it
the explainer Don't leave your old retirement plan behind
-
AI chatbots are leading some to psychosis
The explainer The technology may be fueling delusions
-
Kennedy ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory panel
speed read Health Secretary RFK Jr. is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who has criticized the panel of experts
-
RFK Jr. scraps Covid shots for pregnant women, kids
Speed Read The Health Secretary announced a policy change without informing CDC officials
-
New FDA chiefs limit Covid-19 shots to elderly, sick
speed read The FDA set stricter approval standards for booster shots
-
US overdose deaths plunged 27% last year
speed read Drug overdose still 'remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-44,' said the CDC
-
Trump seeks to cut drug prices via executive order
speed read The president's order tells pharmaceutical companies to lower prescription drug prices, but it will likely be thrown out by the courts
-
RFK Jr. visits Texas as 2nd child dies from measles
Speed Read An outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease continues to grow following a decade of no recorded US measles deaths
-
Shingles vaccine cuts dementia risk, study finds
Speed Read Getting vaccinated appears to significantly reduce the chances of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia
-
Measles outbreak spreads, as does RFK Jr.'s influence
Speed Read The outbreak centered in Texas has grown to at least three states and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is promoting unproven treatments