Obama seeks to ease fears after second nurse diagnosed with Ebola
Washington President BarackObamavowed Wednesday that his administration would respond in a "much more aggressive way" to cases ofEbolain the United States and warned that in an age of frequent travel the disease could spread globally if the world doesn't respond to the "raging epidemic in West Africa."
In his most urgent comments on the spread of the disease,Obamaalso sought to ease growing anxiety and fears in the U.S. in the aftermath of a second nurse being diagnosed withEbolaafter treating a patient in a Dallas hospital. He said he had directed the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to step up its response to new cases.
"We want a rapid response team, a SWAT team essentially, from the CDC to be on the ground as quickly as possible, hopefully within 24 hours, so that they are taking the local hospital step by step though what needs to be done," he said.
Obamaspoke after cancelling a political campaign trip to convene a session of top Cabinet officials involved in theEbolaresponse both in the U.S. and in the West African region where the disease has been spreading at alarming rates.
Participants in the meeting were a roster of Cabinet secretaries and topObamaadvisers, including Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, Attorney General Eric Holder, Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey.
Even as he raised the potential for global contagion,Obamaalso stressed that the danger in the United States remained a long shot.
"Here's what we know aboutEbola. It's not like the flu. It's not airborne," he said.
He made the point of noting that when he visited with health care workers who had attended toEbolapatients at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, he hugged and kissed them without fear of infection. "They followed the protocols, they knew what they were doing," he said. "I felt perfectly safe doing so."
Hours beforeObamacanceled his trip, officials confirmed that a second nurse at a Dallas had tested positive for the virus after treating anEbolapatient who later died. The disclosure raised new fears regarding the exposure by other health care workers. Officials also revealed that the nurse was on a commercial flight the evening before being diagnosed.
Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives John Boehner saidObamashould consider a temporary ban on travel to the United States from the West African countries afflicted by the virus and that the president should weigh other measures "as doubts about the security of our air travel systems grow."
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Obama seeks to ease fears after second nurse diagnosed with Ebola