Enhanced Airport Entry Screening to End for Travelers from Mali to the United States

On Jan. 6, 2015, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will remove Mali from the list of Ebola-affected nations subject to enhanced visa and port-of-entry screening.

Travelers from Mali will no longer be required to undergo enhanced screening and monitoring when entering the United States, nor will they be required to enter the country through the five designated airports that perform this screening. Also on January 6, CDC will remove the Alert Level 2 Travel Notice for Mali, which advised travelers to practice enhanced precautions when visiting that nation.

Travelers departing Mali will remain subject to outbound screening measures, and the United States will continue to support Mali’s Ebola prevention and detection measures, including at its primary international airport. Additionally, anyone traveling from Mali who arrived in the United States before January 6, 2015 must continue active monitoring and report any symptoms for 21 days after leaving Mali.

January 6 will mark two incubation cycles (21 days each) since the last patient in Mali had any contact with a person who was not wearing personal protective equipment (PPE). The last Ebola patient in Mali tested negative on Dec. 5, 2014, and there are currently no active cases. Moreover, subsequent isolated cases of Ebola in Mali would not automatically require reinstitution of these measures, which are used only when there is a risk of widespread transmission.

The cases of Ebola in Bamako, Mali, were related to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Screening and monitoring measures remain in place for travelers entering the United States from those nations. Travel notices for Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone remain at a Warning Level 3 and advise travelers to avoid non-essential travel to the three countries with Ebola outbreaks.

Source: CDC