Illinois Mandates Three Week Ebola Quarantine For 'High-Risk' Travelers
By Jon Graef in News on Oct 25, 2014 6:30PM
Taking a precautionary measure, Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn announced a mandatory 21-day quarantine for individuals who are traveling from Ebola-affected nations Liberia, Sierra Leone, or Guinea, and who may have had contact with people carrying the virus. This despite the fact that there are no confirmed cases of Ebola in Illinois yet.
While Gov. Quinn admitted as much, according to the Daily Herald, he said that the protective measure was "too important to be voluntary."
We must take every step necessary to ensure the people of Illinois are protected from potential exposure to the Ebola virus. While we have no confirmed cases of the Ebola virus in Illinois, we will continue to take every safeguard necessary to protect first responders, health care workers and the people of Illinois.
Unless you're medical personnel who've treated people affected with Ebola, this is extremely unlikely to be you. Nonetheless, the mandatory quarantine represents an escalation of sorts in terms of how the state is reacting to the international health crisis.
Previously, the quarantine was voluntary. (Indeed, a family from Illinois with a relative who was traveling from Liberia placed themselves under that voluntary quarantine.)
The announcement of the mandatory quarantine comes one day after a girl who fell ill during a flight from Liberia to Chicago tested negative for the Ebola virus
Earlier this week, Gov. Quinn announced the creation of an Ebola task force "to help ensure a coordinated effort to communicate with the public and [to help report] any situation that involves testing for Ebola," according to a news release posted on the governor's website.
Previously, Mayor Rahm Emanuel held an Ebola summit to to assuage any concerns Chicagoans may have about the virus. O'Hare International Airport began screening passengers arriving from West Africa for signs of the Ebola virus as well.
Along with New York and New Jersey, Illinois is one of three states to impose the mandatory 21-day quarantine.