Following the death of an Ebola patient at the Texas Presbyterian Hospital, a health care worker in the facility contracted the disease, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Sunday.
According to the CDC, 4,033 deaths from Ebola have been confirmed since Oct. 10, half of all total cases around the world.
Ebola is spread through direct contact with bodily fluids of an infected individual.
Other policies regarding the concerns about Ebola include stopping flights from the United States to parts of West Africa.
Candidates for U.S. Representative for Indiana’s third district have weighed in on how they feel about the United States’ response to the outbreak.
Rep. Marlin Stutzman said in a statement that he supports what the U.S. has done in response to Ebola, including the militant combat of the disease.
Six U.S. military planes sending aid workers and Marines arrived in Liberia last week to help Africans infected with the disease and to contain the virus, according to the Associated Press.
“I believe the best way to combat Ebola is to make sure we are doing everything we can to keep it at its source,” Stutzman said.
He also said domestically, Americans should listen to the CDC for its public health recommendations.
Democratic challenger Justin Kuhnle said he approved of the government’s responses to the crisis so far.
“I believe the current path of building on infrastructure, teaching/training on proper hygiene and giving adequate medical resources is the biggest and best-case scenario on dealing with this outbreak,” Kuhnle said in an email. “For the United States, we can continue on to the initial clinical trials of the experimental medicine that has shown progress in the first human cases and if proven, we can mass produce this to be used as another tool in the fight against Ebola.”
Kuhnle added that he did not support stopping flights from the U.S. to West Africa due to possible economic ?implications.
Libertarian candidate Scott Wise disagrees.
“I believe we should close commercial air travel from west Africa, and closely monitor anyone traveling here who comes from, or has traveled through west Africa,” Wise said. “This means an interview and symptom check. It also means follow-up contact throughout the incubation period.”
He also said the U.S. should continue to fund the production of treatments of Ebola.
The midterm election is Nov. 4.
This story is part of a weekly series profiling members of the U.S. Congress and their opposing candidates for the midterm election Nov. 4. Candidates from each district will be interviewed on a rolling basis.
