The Trump administration is making plans to send American citizens who have been exposed to the Ebola virus to Kenya for monitoring and treatment, rather than sending them back to the United States.
This is a substantial change from the way such circumstances have been handled by previous administrations.
According to The New York Times, a facility is being set up in Kenya through a coordinated effort involving the State Department, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Health and Human Services.
A few dozen Public Health Service officers are currently being trained to deploy to Kenya to provide medical care to Americans considered at high risk of developing the disease.
During previous Ebola outbreaks, American health workers and citizens who were exposed to the virus were brought back to the United States and treated at specialised medical units.
In contrast, the current administration this month flew an American doctor who developed symptoms to a hospital in Germany, and transported six other Americans to Germany and the Czech Republic for monitoring.
The initial plan was to monitor exposed Americans in Kenya and transfer anyone who developed symptoms to Europe for treatment.
However, the administration has since expanded the plan to include treatment in Kenya as well, including for government scientists and physicians who develop symptoms.
Each case will be evaluated individually in the event that more advanced care is needed elsewhere, according to a Trump administration official cited by the Times.
The move comes as the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) continues to escalate rapidly.
The outbreak has grown to more than 1,000 cases and over 200 deaths in just 11 days since it was first officially announced, making it already the third largest on record.
Critics have pointed to aid cuts by the Trump administration that shut down disease surveillance networks and medical supply chains, which experts say could have detected and contained the epidemic at an earlier stage.
Last week, the administration also invoked a public health law known as Title 42 to bar immigrants and legal permanent residents who had been in Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan within the previous 21 days from entering the United States.
Ebola carries a death rate of around 50 percent, though early access to quality care and treatment can significantly improve survival odds.
Experts quoted by The New York Times raised concerns over whether a newly established facility in Kenya would be able to match the level of care provided by the specialised Ebola treatment units already in place in the United States.
The White House declined to comment.
