No Ebola Quarantine, but Self-Monitoring for Air Crews
Stars and Stripes reports that “Unlike other American military personnel returning from Ebola outbreak areas… aircrew members with the 37th Airlift Squadron are not subject to the Pentagon’s stringent 21-day monitoring for possible Ebola symptoms in an isolated military facility.”
“The strict protocols, which supersede guidance set by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for travelers returning from the afflicted region, don’t apply to those on flying missions.”
“The Defense Department classifies aircrew members as ‘transient’ — personnel who only transit an airfield of a country where an Ebola virus outbreak is occurring.”
“They’re told to check and record their temperatures twice a day for 21 days — considered the maximum incubation period for the virus – and during that time, make twice-weekly visits to medical staff. A fever over 100.4 Fahrenheit or other Ebola-like symptoms would prompt notification of their medical provider and immediate treatment.”