Bay Area Airports Working with CDC to Prevent Spread of Ebola

Airplane passengers are voicing concerns about flying after a Dallas nurse was diagnosed with the deadly Ebola virus after traveling on a commercial flight from Cleveland to Dallas.

The concerns are shared by travelers in the Bay Area.

"I'm not going to touch anything on the plane," Sunnyvale-resident Marielle Bautista said while at Mineta San Jose International Airport. "I'm not going to the bathroom. I'm not going to take anything from the stewardess. I'm just going to sit there until I get off cause you never know."

Bautista also said she loaded up on hand sanitizers before her flight to Las Vegas.

Bay Area airports are following Centers for Disease Control guidelines to prevent the spread of Ebola. They include:

  • Allowing airlines to prevent patients from boarding if they are suspected of having a contagious disease.
  • Ensuring crews follow infection control precautions.
  • Treating all bodily fluids as if they are infectious.
  • Keeping a sick person separated from others as much as possible.

San Francisco International Airport is not one of the five U.S. airports that currently screens passengers for Ebola.

On Wednesday, California Department of Health leaders said they are asking the federal government to change that.

"We continue to be concerned that some of the international airports are not screening," said Dr. Gil Chavez of the Department of Public Health. "And we are asking California include a few."

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