US imposes Ebola travel declaration as WHO approves trials of two new vaccines
Passengers flying to the United States must attest that they have not been in DR Congo in the previous 21 days.
Passengers boarding international flights to the United States are now required to sign a statement confirming that they have not been in the Democratic Republic of Congo during the 21 days preceding their travel, under rules that came into force on Tuesday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) described the measure as "a public health measure intended to reduce the risk of Ebola being introduced into the United States through air travel".
Africa's current Ebola epidemic has killed more than 5,300 people, the overwhelming majority in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
Vaccine candidates
On Wednesday, the World Health Organization approved the addition of two vaccine candidates to a clinical trial in the country. The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, for which the existing Ervebo vaccine is not approved. The new candidates, ChAdOx1 BDBV, developed by the University of Oxford with the Serum Institute of India, and Moderna's mRNA-1469, were designed specifically for the strain. The trial is led by the Congolese National Institute of Biomedical Research.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus cautioned that vaccines were not a substitute for proven measures such as early care, contact tracing, isolation, safe burials and trusted engagement with communities.