The CDC finally admits what we suspected

Hat tip Liberty News. Yes, we have suspected that Ebola is easier to contract than, for example, the AIDS virus.

Ebola is a lot easier to catch than health officials have admitted — and can be contracted by contact with a doorknob contaminated by a sneeze from an infected person an hour or more before, experts told The Post Tuesday.

“If you are sniffling and sneezing, you produce microorganisms that can get on stuff in a room. If people touch them, they could be” infected, said Dr. Meryl Nass, of the Institute for Public Accuracy in Washington, DC.

Nass pointed to a poster the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quietly released on its Web site saying the deadly virus can be spread through “droplets.”

“Droplet spread happens when germs traveling inside droplets that are coughed or sneezed from a sick person enter the eyes, nose or mouth of another person,” the poster states.

No, we shouldn't panic, but we like information when information reflects the Truth. Knowledge is power, and should lead to preparedness.

We need a travel ban

This NR article states well why we need a travel ban to help prevent the spread of Ebola in the United States. Excerpt:

The ban should, of course, apply to a traveler’s country of origin, preventing persons from West Africa from entering the United States via other countries. Such a ban would, in theory, have prevented entry to Thomas Eric Duncan, the first person to be diagnosed with Ebola in the United States, who arrived from Liberia via Belgium. Furthermore, it would have protected the two hospital workers who contracted the disease through their interactions with Duncan.

No, the ban would not work perfectly. But an inability to eliminate all risk whatsoever should not disqualify efforts that would reduce it, and restrictions would substantially curtail travel from high-risk nations and minimize the risk of Ebola-infected patients reaching American shores.

The situation in Dallas makes clear that it is easier to protect Americans from the disease by keeping it abroad than by addressing it when it arrives. Screening procedures failed, because prior to boarding in Liberia, Duncan lied about his contact with the disease. When Duncan told staff at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital that he had just returned from Liberia, they took no notice and sent him home with a fever of 103 degrees. The two hospital workers now suffering Ebola were the victims of minor missteps in following safety guidelines. Even with American health standards and procedures, treating and containing the virus affords ample opportunities for accidental transmission. The U.S. can reduce that risk by instituting travel restrictions that will minimize Americans’ contact with the virus and keep the treatment process, as much as possible, abroad.

No, the ban would not work perfectly. But an inability to eliminate all risk whatsoever should not disqualify efforts that would reduce it.... It's hard to imagine how our leaders can trade this common sense fact for the blather they have been feeding us. But I suspect political correctness and false accusations of racism.

Stop Ebola Flights Petitions

Matt Lynch is advertising this petition on Twitter to stop flights to and from ebola countries. Let's all sign it. I can't think of a reason not to.

Sign my online petition #StopEbolaFlights at http://t.co/etPmSM0Qs0

— Matt Lynch (@MattLynch4Ohio) October 15, 2014

Text of the petition:

We, the undersigned concerned citizens of the United States, hereby demand that the U.S. government immediately suspend commercial flights from countries at high risk for Ebola infection, including Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea. We further demand that all non-emergency or non-medical travelers from these nations be denied entry into the United States until the Ebola crisis has ended.

Here's another one on the White House website. Over 38,000 signatures -- just signed both.

Obama-Ebola Image Files

Here are a few in different formats. Click for full size.

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GIF

Ohhhh.... you're welcome.