U.S. passengers flying from Ebola-affected countries rerouted

A medical student and freelance reporter returning from Uganda encountered new U.S. entry rules at Entebbe International Airport. He was instructed to arrive at Washington Dulles International Airport because he had been in Uganda within the prior 21 days. The policy was announced shortly before his departure and required routing Americans from Uganda, South Sudan, or the Democratic Republic of Congo through designated U.S. airports. Additional allowed airports were later added in Atlanta and Houston. The rules were tied to a growing Ebola outbreak in the region, declared a public health emergency of international concern. The U.S. response includes travel restrictions, the ability to deny entry to some travelers, and enhanced screening on arrival.

"“He tells me that I have to arrive at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD),” Ruprecht says, “The first thing that was going through my head was denial. I wasn't sure if this was real.” Ruprecht was one of the first passengers to fly under a policy announced just hours before: all Americans who have passed through Uganda, South Sudan or the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in the past 21 days must fly into IAD, an airport in a Virginia suburb of Washington, DC."

"“He did this sort of double look and asked me, was I sure I was going to Michigan?” he recalls. Ruprecht, a medical student and freelance reporter, was returning home after a month-long reporting trip to Uganda, where he was working on stories for NPR. At the airline counter, he told the agent that he was headed to Michigan, but the agent showed him a memo from U.S. Customs and Border Protection."

"The African countries, the DRC and Uganda, have been hit by a growing Ebola outbreak, which the World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern on May 17. Already, there are 800 suspected cases and more than 180 suspected deaths, according to the WHO. A major component of the U.S. response has been travel restrictions, on those who have recently come through affected countries: routing U.S. citizens to specified entry points, reserving the right to deny entry to permanent residents and barring most others."

"At the Ugandan airport, Ruprecht frantically rebooked his flights. When he arrived at Dulles airport after 20 hours of travel, he was flagged for extra screening. Officials for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ushered him int"

Read at www.npr.org