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Ebola outbreak: US nurse to be discharged from quarantine | Ebola outbreak: US nurse to be discharged from quarantine |
(35 minutes later) | |
A nurse quarantined in New Jersey after treating Ebola patients in Sierra Leone will be discharged after being symptom-free for 24 hours. | |
Kaci Hickox will be flown to her home state of Maine, officials said. | |
She had threatened legal action over her confinement, saying she was made to feel like a criminal after returning to the US last Friday. | |
The White House and mayor of New York have expressed concerns over new strict quarantine orders in several US states. | The White House and mayor of New York have expressed concerns over new strict quarantine orders in several US states. |
The new rules in New York, New Jersey and Illinois require a mandatory 21-day quarantine for all health workers who have had contact with Ebola patients in West Africa upon their return to the US. | The new rules in New York, New Jersey and Illinois require a mandatory 21-day quarantine for all health workers who have had contact with Ebola patients in West Africa upon their return to the US. |
The measures were announced after a New York doctor who had treated patients in Guinea fell ill with Ebola last week. | The measures were announced after a New York doctor who had treated patients in Guinea fell ill with Ebola last week. |
Amid criticism the quarantine rules were overly strict, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo eased the state's restrictions on Sunday, allowing returning health workers to pass the quarantine period in their homes. | |
More than 10,000 people have contracted the Ebola virus, with 4,922 deaths, according to the World Health Organization's latest figures. | More than 10,000 people have contracted the Ebola virus, with 4,922 deaths, according to the World Health Organization's latest figures. |
All but 27 of the cases have occurred inside Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. | All but 27 of the cases have occurred inside Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. |
Separately on Monday, a five-year-old boy was being tested for Ebola at Bellevue Hospital in New York City after visiting an Ebola-stricken country and developing a fever, hospital officials said. Test results were expected later in the day. | Separately on Monday, a five-year-old boy was being tested for Ebola at Bellevue Hospital in New York City after visiting an Ebola-stricken country and developing a fever, hospital officials said. Test results were expected later in the day. |
The New Jersey health department said Ms Hickox had tested negative for Ebola on Saturday and had been free of symptoms for 24 hours. | |
Governor Chris Christie, who had earlier defended his state's quarantine procedures, said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had been overseeing all her treatment in New Jersey, and said he was "hopeful" the hospital would be able to release her on Monday. | |
"I understand that she didn't want to be there," Mr Christie said. | |
"She made that very clear from the beginning, but my obligation is to all the people of New Jersey and we're just going to continue to do that." | |
Ms Hickox, who worked for medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), arrived at Newark Airport on Friday and was placed in isolation after developing a fever, the state health department said. | |
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has described Ms Hickox as a "returning hero", but said that she had been "treated with disrespect" when put into quarantine. | New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has described Ms Hickox as a "returning hero", but said that she had been "treated with disrespect" when put into quarantine. |
"We owe her better than that and all the people better than that," he told reporters outside New York's Bellevue Hospital, where an American doctor, Craig Spencer, is being treated for the virus. | "We owe her better than that and all the people better than that," he told reporters outside New York's Bellevue Hospital, where an American doctor, Craig Spencer, is being treated for the virus. |
The stricter measures were put in place after Dr Spencer tested positive for Ebola on his return from Guinea last week and unwittingly moved around the city before the symptoms developed. | The stricter measures were put in place after Dr Spencer tested positive for Ebola on his return from Guinea last week and unwittingly moved around the city before the symptoms developed. |
The White House has warned that quarantine measures could put off aid workers and others travelling to West Africa to help mitigate the crisis at its source. | |
And Dr Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said such quarantines would actually hurt the fight against Ebola. | |
"The best way to protect us is to stop the epidemic in Africa, and we need those healthcare workers, so we do not want to put them in a position where it makes it very, very uncomfortable for them to even volunteer to go," Dr Fauci said. | |
He said those returning from treating Ebola patients should be monitored for symptoms. | |
Ebola virus disease (EVD) | Ebola virus disease (EVD) |
Ebola special report | Ebola special report |