Ebola Threat May Impact DFW Airport Protocol
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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - The White House today said President Obama and key leaders including the vice-president discussed the ongoing Ebola outbreak including efforts to prevent the spread of the virus in the U.S. Included in the talks were the possibilities of health screenings at all ports of entry for international travelers. The announcement comes as there is growing debate about how best to prevent the disease from entering the U.S. after a case was discovered in Dallas.
The debate over how much should be done to prevent the spread of Ebola among travelers is driven by whether the single case in the country scares you like it does Joshua Caster who works at DFW Airport.
"It's definitely a scare at times," he said.
Or doesn't scare you.
"It's just life," said traveler Rachel Terrazas. "You can't get paranoid about stuff like that. There are always diseases.
Some are calling for a complete ban on a lot of international travel, not just travel from affected parts of Africa.
"What is correct is that we treat this circumstance where we stop travel to the United States not just from there, but also understanding that the African travel goes through Europe and other places and we can have people visiting the United States," said U.S. Rep. Pete Sessions, (R) Texas.
But advisors to president Obama say that kind of ban is unlikely. The latest idea is to create health screens in the U.S. like ones used at African airports in effected areas. It would use digital thermometers and record any obvious signs of illness.
"I think it would be safe," Caster said. "Especially since DFW has expanded its international flying. It's something we have to expand at all airports."
But in a day where travelers are already slowed by long lines at security checkpoint, some think a health checkpoint would be another unnecessary delay.
"I think it's kind of intrusive," Terrazas said. "Yeah, I don't think they should do that. I don't think we have time for that."
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