New travel screening considered to halt Ebola spread

None of the 48 people being monitored in connection with the first Ebola case diagnosed in the U.S. is showing any signs of fever or being ill, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Thomas Frieden said Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the CDC is considering the role of travel in the possible spread of Ebola and intends to announce new measures to mitigate that risk “in coming days,” Frieden said. “We're working intensely on a screening process and looking at that entire process to see what more can be done.”

Liberia native Thomas Eric Duncan, who tested positive for the virus in Dallas after traveling from the West African nation, remains in critical but stable condition at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas, the hospital's parent system reported.

“He is on a ventilator and receiving kidney dialysis,” the Texas Health Resources said in a statement. “His liver function, which declined over the weekend, has improved, but doctors caution that this could vary in coming days. He will continue to receive the investigational medication brincidofovir.”

In Dallas, 10 people who had direct contact with Duncan and 38 others who are listed as possible contacts of Duncan are being monitored and have shown no signs of being ill, Frieden said.

Follow John N. Frank on Twitter: @MHJFrank