Ebola outbreak: Trump admin prepares quarantine facility in Kenya for Americans exposed to virus

Amid the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, President Donald Trump's administration is preparing a quarantine facility in Congo for Americans who have been exposed to the virus, an official said on Wednesday (local time).

NBC News reported that the decision to send Americans away is a departure from previous Ebola outbreaks, which often involved flying Americans exposed to the virus back to Washington for quarantine or treatment.

Lawrence Gostin, the director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center on National and Global Health Law, said the decision to quarantine Americans in Kenya is “unprecedented.”

Gostin, in an email, wrote, "It is likely to cost American lives. We have an ethical duty to protect U.S. citizens, especially brave health and humanitarian workers who have cared for Ebola patients. It is impossible to give high-quality care to Ebola patients in Kenya, compared with our state-of-the-art facilities in the U.S.”

During a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the administration's top priority is to protect the people, and added, "We cannot and will not allow any cases of Ebola to enter the United States."

The official said the facility, created through a joint effort involving the Departments of State, Defense, and Health and Human Services, would be capable of treating the “full spectrum” of Ebola cases, including patients requiring intensive or critical care.

The official added that patients needing more specialised treatment could still be transferred to other facilities on a case-by-case basis.

“Time is of the essence for Ebola patients, and this facility will enable Americans in the region who contract Ebola to receive lifesaving care as quickly as possible,” the official said.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Ebola Bundibugyo virus outbreak in Ituri province was spreading in an environment where insecurity, attacks on health facilities, and population movements were making it “nearly impossible” to trace contacts and isolate cases.

The Bundibugyo strain of Ebola virus disease, first identified in Uganda in 2007, has no approved vaccine or treatment. The WHO has warned that the outbreak continues to expand geographically, with signs of ongoing cross-border transmission.

According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the outbreak is primarily concentrated in Ituri province but has spread to 11 health zones. Cases have also been identified in North Kivu, including Butembo and Goma, as well as in South Kivu.

Health authorities said the virus is being transmitted within families and healthcare settings, with infections tied to caregiving, family events, and unsafe burial practices.