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Houston airports not screening for coronavirus
The U.S. has its first case of China's mysterious new coronavirus in Washington state. A total of five airports are conducting health screenings to prevent further spread.
HOUSTON - The Centers for Disease Control are now doing health screenings for the Coronavirus at airports in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
“Most passengers will get questioned, get their temperatures taken and be sent on their way,” said Nancy Messonnier with the CDC. “But passengers potentially at risk to have the Coronavirus, that is people who are sick and have been exposed, they’re going to get additional questions and they may actually be sent for a workout.”
“As of yet, they deem it is not necessary to implement additional screening at Bush International Airport,” said Houston Airport Systems spokesperson Augusto Bernal.
Even though thousands of passengers all over the world pass through Bush Airport’s Terminal E, officials say there are currently no screenings for the Coronavirus and for good reason.
“Houston does not receive direct flights from Wuhan, China, where they think the virus is spreading from,” Bernal said.
Dallas’s airports also have no current plans to screen passengers for the virus.
“We are not one of the top priority airports,” said Dr. Philip Huang with the Dallas County Health Department. “I think we will be at the next level if things progress we are monitoring and assessing the situation along with everyone else.”
Currently, everyone traveling from the section of China where the outbreak began to the United States are being rerouted and can only go to the five airports now conducting the screenings.