In an interview with Dallas Morning News, Senator Ted Cruz called for flight bans on non-U.S. passengers traveling from countries significantly impacted by Ebola to the U.S.
“Common sense dictates that we should impose a travel ban on commercial airline flights from nations afflicted by Ebola,” [Cruz] said by phone from Texas. “There’s no reason to allow ongoing commercial air traffic out of those countries.” … Cruz agreed that the United States should send medical teams and supplies. But he said military transports would suffice. “Health care personnel can be brought in on military C-130 flights,” he said. “The risks of epidemic are far too large for us to allow unimpeded commercial flights.”
Senator Cruz sent the FAA a number of questions 13 days ago regarding what preventative measures are being taken to ensure no more Ebola cases come to the U.S. and has not yet heard back.
“Common sense dictates that we should impose a travel ban on commercial airline flights from nations afflicted by Ebola,” he said by phone from Texas. “There’s no reason to allow ongoing commercial air traffic out of those countries.”
Public polls show broad support for barring the entry of travelers from those countries. But top public health experts argue that such a ban would hamper efforts to control the outbreak in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea — making an international pandemic more likely.
“If we do things that unintentionally make it harder to get that response in, to get supplies in, that make it harder for those governments to manage … it’s going to become much harder to stop the outbreak at the source,” Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Monday. “If that were to happen, it would spread for more months and potentially to other countries, and that would increase rather than decrease the risk to Americans.”
Cruz agreed that the United States should send medical teams and supplies. But he said military transports would suffice.
“Health care personnel can be brought in on military C-130 flights,” he said. “The risks of epidemic are far too large for us to allow unimpeded commercial flights.”
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A number of Texas lawmakers have demanded screening at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport. Several have demanded travel bans. House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Austin, has called for cutting off visas for West Africans.
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