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The United States has temporarily barred green-card holders from entering the country if they have travelled to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Uganda or South Sudan within the last 21 days, as authorities intensify efforts to prevent the spread of Ebola into the country.
The order, issued on Friday, expands earlier travel restrictions that only applied to non-US citizens without permanent residency status, reports the Gurdaian.
Under the new directive, lawful permanent residents are now also affected, although US citizens remain exempt.
According to the order, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) determined that restricting entry for certain green-card holders was necessary in the interest of public health.
Read more: No vaccine as Congo ebola outbreak worsens, over 100 reported dead
The order stated that lawful permanent residents may maintain closer ties with families and communities outside the United States than US citizens, making the temporary restriction “comparatively less burdensome.”
The new measures come as the US government seeks to contain the risk posed by the ongoing Ebola outbreak linked to the rare Bundibugyo strain currently affecting parts of Central and East Africa.
The CDC has also expanded enhanced Ebola screening measures for travellers arriving from the affected countries.
In addition to Washington Dulles International Airport, screening operations will now also be conducted at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
US authorities cited limited quarantine resources and the high costs associated with containing infectious diseases as part of the reason for the tougher controls.
“Containing quarantinable communicable diseases on US soil is highly resource-intensive, requiring specialised and isolated facilities with limited capacity,” the CDC said in a statement.
Currently, 18 individuals are being held in quarantine at the University of Nebraska after being evacuated from the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently stressed that preventing Ebola cases from entering the United States remained a top government priority.
“Our No. 1 objective on Ebola has to be we can’t have it affect the United States. We can’t have Ebola cases coming here,” Rubio said.
The travel restriction on green-card holders will remain in effect for an initial period of 30 days.
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