Two countries, two Ebola playbooks: U.S. introduces travel ban while Canada says welcome, but self

Just days after the U.S. diverted a Detroit-bound flight to Montreal as Ebola fears widen, Canada rolled out a different plan that would allow Ebola-positive travellers into the country if they self-isolate, while also tightening some immigration rules for impacted regions.

Canada’s Health Minister Marjorie Michel announced new mandatory self-isolation measures on Tuesday for higher-risk travellers entering the country.

As of May 30, Canadian citizens, permanent residents and foreign nationals who have been in impacted countries in the previous 21 days will be allowed to enter Canada but must undergo a health assessment and quarantine, officials said in the briefing.

Canada is also introducing some immigration measures tied to the outbreak.

Federal officials announced Tuesday that immigration documents from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan will be suspended for at least 90 days beginning Wednesday night, marking the first use of Ottawa’s sweeping new powers under Bill C-12.

The move pauses the processing of permanent residence visas, work permits, study permits and travel authorizations as officials race to contain the risk ahead of the upcoming FIFA World Cup, which Canada is set to co-host next month.

Officials described the move as a “pause” rather than an outright ban.

“The health and safety of people in Canada is our top priority,” Michel says in her statement.

“These temporary border measures will help reduce the risk of Ebola disease entering the country while ensuring that travellers are managed based on their level of risk. We will continue to take action guided by science and evidence to protect Canadians."

U.S. response to the Ebola outbreak

The U.S. has rolled out some of the toughest Ebola-related border measures seen outside Africa so far.

Under new CDC and Department of Homeland Security rules, non-citizens, including permanent residents, who have recently travelled to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda or South Sudan are temporarily barred from entering the United States, while American citizens must undergo enhanced health screening at designated airports.

Washington has also redirected travellers from impacted regions through specific airports including Washington Dulles and Atlanta for additional screening and monitoring.

The measures came into focus last week after U.S. authorities ordered a Detroit-bound Air France flight diverted to Montreal when a passenger linked to the outbreak region boarded the aircraft despite the restrictions.

The dramatically different responses are sparking debate over whether Canada is taking a science-based approach or being far more relaxed than the U.S. as global concern over Ebola grows.

Inside the Ebola outbreak sparking global alarm

The outbreak at the centre of the growing global alarm is unfolding in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, where health officials are racing to contain the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, a version of the virus that currently has no approved vaccine or treatment, according to a release shared by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The health authority has declared the outbreak a global public health emergency, warning the virus is spreading rapidly through conflict zones and overcrowded displacement camps.

Latest figures shared by WHO show the current Ebola outbreak has over 900 suspected cases and over 200 deaths reported in both the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda.

‘Not like we’re going to have an Ebola virus outbreak in Canada’: Infections disease specialist

Canadian infectious disease specialist Dr. Isaac Bogoch says Canada’s new Ebola measures aim at reducing what is already an “extraordinarily small” risk of the virus entering and spreading within the country.

Bogoch, a professor at the University of Toronto’s Department of Medicine, says Ottawa’s strategy balances protecting Canadians and supporting countries at the centre of the outbreak.

“We have to balance a couple of things,” he tells Yahoo News Canada. “One is supporting the outbreak response simultaneously with ensuring Canada and Canadians are safe.”

He states helping affected countries contain the outbreak is both “the moral and ethical thing to do” and the best way to reduce the risk of cases spreading internationally.

While Canada is not banning travel outright, Bogoch notes the new 21-day isolation policy lowers an already very small risk even further.

“The risk of importation is low to begin with, and this policy will further reduce an already very low risk,” he said.

Bogoch also stressed Ebola spreads through “close and direct contact with ill people,” not through casual airborne transmission. “It’s not like we’re going to have an Ebola virus outbreak in Canada,” he adds.

He says that even in a worst-case scenario where a case is imported, the risk of wider transmission in Canada remains “extraordinarily low” because of the country’s “functional healthcare and public health service.”

‘Put a travel ban’: Canada’s Ebola response sparks backlash

Canadians are turning to social media to raise questions after the feds announced the new Ebola quarantine measures that would allow higher-risk travellers into the country under mandatory self-isolation rules, with many questioning why Ottawa is not taking a harder line similar to the United States.

Here are some of the concerns Canadians are raising in response to the new measures.

Others raised the question of why Canada simply can’t implement a travel ban to affected countries while outbreak concerns linger.

Comparisons are being drawn to U.S.’s strict no entry response while Canada allows those who test positive entry.

Others questioned what testing measures are being implemented at outbreak sites to mitigate the spread of the virus outside of the hotspots.