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A nurse's assistant in Spain is the first person known to have contracted Ebola outside of Africa in the current outbreak.
Spanish Health Minister Ana Mato announced Monday that a test confirmed the assistant has the virus.
The woman helped treat a
Spanish missionary and a Spanish priest, both of whom had contracted
Ebola in West Africa. Both died after returning to Spain.
Health officials said she
developed symptoms on September 30. She was not hospitalized until this
week. Her only symptom was a fever.
"We are working in
coordination to give the best care to the patient and to guarantee the
safety of all citizens," the health minister said.
An investigation is under
way to find everyone the assistant may have had contact with while
contagious. So far, there are no other known cases.
The assistant was one of about 30 health professionals in Spain who helped to treat the Ebola patients.
The news came amid growing fears in the United States that the disease could spread.
"As I've said from the
start of this outbreak, I consider this a top national security
priority. This is not just a matter of charity ... This is an issue
about our safety," President Barack Obama told reporters Monday.
He called for protocols to help stop the spread of the disease, while downplaying the risk of an epidemic in the United States.
"We're also going to be
working on protocols to do additional passenger screening, both at the
source and here in the United States," he said. "Here in the United
States, at least, the chances of an outbreak -- of an epidemic here --
are extraordinarily low."
Texas Gov.: Quarantines at borders
To avoid an outbreak,
the federal government should start enhanced screening and quarantines
at borders, Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Monday.
"There's only so much
that a state can do," said Perry, whose state is the first to have a
patient diagnosed with the disease inside the United States.
Thomas Eric Duncan
flew into the United States last month from Liberia, the country hit
hardest by the epidemic. He was coming to visit family and friends.
After his Ebola diagnosis at a Dallas hospital, Duncan now lies in an
isolation unit in critical condition.
"We appreciate and we
applaud the assistance we've received from the Centers for Disease
Control and other federal agencies we've worked with," he said. But, he
added, "Washington needs to take immediate steps to minimize the dangers
of Ebola and other infectious diseases."
Customs and Border
Protection "should immediately be directed to conduct enhanced screening
procedures, obtaining more information about people who are coming from
affected areas," and taking "appropriate steps" as simple as taking a
person's temperature, Perry said at a news conference.
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The procedures "will
also necessitate fully staffed, prepared quarantine stations wherever
people are entering the country, ready to care for anyone whose
screening turns up a concern, helping to prevent contagions from
entering this country," he said.
Perry also announced the
signing of an executive order creating the Texas Task Force on
Infectious Disease Preparedness and Response.
The group is charged
with studying and improving the state's plans for dealing with outbreaks
such as Ebola and helping Texas quickly halt the spread of diseases. It
will also share expertise with other states when needed.
Patient's dad: I told him not to cover the outbreak
As he spoke, another state was treating its second Ebola patient in the current outbreak. The first was Dr. Rick Sacra, who was treated and no longer has Ebola.
Freelance cameraman
Ashoka Mukpo, who contracted the virus while covering the epidemic in
West Africa, arrived for treatment in isolation at Nebraska Medical
Center on Monday.
His father, Mitchell
Levy, said he had tried to dissuade his son from going to cover the
outbreak. "I told him he was crazy," Levy said.
Mukpo was strong enough to walk off the plane, said Dr. Brad Britigan with the hospital. Doctors are evaluating his condition.
