Military will be placed on a three week lock down upon return, while civilians are exempt.
The Pentagon said Friday it has designated five military bases inside the U.S. and two in Europe as quarantine areas for troops returning from the Ebola-response mission in West Africa.
Servicemembers will be isolated for 21 days at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Fort Hood and Fort Bliss, Texas; and Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia to check for symptoms of the deadly virus, Pentagon press secretary Rear Adm. John Kirby said. Army garrisons in Baumholder, Germany, and Vicenza, Italy, will also be quarantine sites.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel ordered the three-week quarantines late last month for troops who spend time on the ground as part of the military’s Operation United Assistance, which is supporting U.S. humanitarian aid efforts in hard-hit East Africa countries where nearly 5,000 have died.[…]
Under the new plans, civilians in the fight against Ebola will now be able to get medical treatment on military bases and free treatment from hospitals in the United States, Kirby said.
More than 1,900 Defense Department personnel are deployed to Africa, with the majority in Liberia and small contingent in Senegal, and that number could climb to 4,000.
The military’s newly built Monrovia Medical Unit in Liberia was set to open Saturday and will care for doctors and other health care workers fighting the dangerous disease. The U.S. hopes the 25-bed facility will encourage and reassure medical assistance.
Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey has said the military mission will probably last 18 months, and feature six-month rotations for military personnel.