President Obama said Tuesday that when it comes to dealing with Americans who have come into contact with the deadly Ebola virus, there are simply different standards in place for U.S. civilians and members of the U.S. armed forces.
The president’s remarks were made Tuesday during a scheduled press briefing on the federal government’s handling of the outbreak.
Are you concerned “[t]here might be some confusion between the quarantine rules used by the military and used by healthcare workers by some states?” a reporter asked.
“Well, the [U.S.] military is in a different situation, obviously, because they are, first of all, not treating patients,” the president said. “Second of all, they are not there voluntarily, it’s part of their mission that has been assigned to them by their commanders and, ultimately by me, the commander in chief.
“We don’t expect to have similar rules for our military and as we do for our civilians. They are already, by definition, if they’re in the military, under more circumscribed conditions,” he added.
There are approximately 900 U.S. troops in West Africa to help local officials deal with the deadly outbreak. That number is expected to grow to at least 3,000 in the coming months.
Members of the U.S. armed forces are required to undergo a 21-day quarantine upon their return from West Africa.
Meanwhile, Govs. Chris Christie of New Jersey, a Republican, and Andrew Cuomo of New York, a Democrat, have come under fire for requiring that healthcare workers returning from areas infected with Ebola also undergo mandatory quarantining.
“When we have volunteers, who are taking time out from their families, from their loved ones and so forth, to go over their because they have a very particular expertise to tackle a very difficult job, we want to make sure that when they come back that we are prudent, that we are making sure that they are not at risk themselves or at risk of spreading the disease,” the president said.
“But we don’t want to do things that aren’t based on science and best practices. Because if we do, then we’re just putting another barrier on somebody who’s already doing really important work on our behalf. And that’s not something that I think any of us should want to happen. Alright?” he added.
