Trump Administration Bans Travelers from Ebola-Stricken Countries Amid Growing Outbreak

In response to a deadly Ebola outbreak overseas, the Trump administration is imposing new restrictions to stop travelers coming from infected countries.

Foreigners who visited the Congo, South Sudan, or Uganda in the past 21 days will be denied entry into the United States.

This ban will be in effect for the next 30 days.

CBS News reported:

The Trump administration announced Monday it’s adding additional screening measures and restricting people who don’t have U.S. passports from entering the country if they have been in three African nations affected by a growing Ebola outbreak. At least 80 people are believed to have died from the latest outbreak of the virus, according to the World Health Organization.

People without U.S. passports who have traveled to Congo, Uganda or South Sudan in the past three weeks will be restricted from entering the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced.

The CDC also said the U.S. would enhance public health screening for people traveling from areas affected by the outbreak.

The travel order is among several measures announced by the CDC that take effect immediately and will be in effect for 30 days. The CDC said the travel order doesn’t apply to U.S. citizens, green-card holders or U.S. service members.

This Ebola outbreak is already the deadliest in many years. It’s caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the virus, which is rarer and more resistant to vaccines.

So far, hundreds of people have been infected, and at least 80 people have died.

The WHO has declared it an international public health emergency.

This clip from CBS News dove deeper into the situation:

🚨 JUST IN: Amid the reported Ebola outbreak, the Trump admin has just BANNED foreigners from entering the US who have traveled to the Congo, South Sudan, or Uganda in the past 21 days, per STAT

This is an order from the CDC.

We should make this ban PERMANENT, to be honest. pic.twitter.com/eYLVqvsNvf

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) May 18, 2026

In addition to imposing travel restrictions out of an abundance of caution, the U.S. State Department has raised its travel advisory to the Congo from a Level 3 to Level 4.

At least six U.S. citizens have been exposed to the Ebola virus in the Congo.

One American physician who was in the Congo as part of a Christian mission has tested positive for the rare strain.

Here are the details:

🇺🇸🇨🇩 A U.S. missionary just tested positive for Ebola in the Congo.

It was the rare Bundibugyo strain, not the more common Zaire.

Dr. Peter Stafford contracted it while treating patients during an active outbreak.

His wife and another missionary are quarantined but… https://t.co/rmpUY0KhXu pic.twitter.com/QfjhwVDQ8k

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 18, 2026

A U.S. missionary just tested positive for Ebola in the Congo.

It was the rare Bundibugyo strain, not the more common Zaire.

Dr. Peter Stafford contracted it while treating patients during an active outbreak.

His wife and another missionary are quarantined but asymptomatic.

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The DRC has had more Ebola outbreaks than any country on Earth.

When Western healthcare workers with access to proper training still get infected, it tells you everything about how hard containment actually is on the ground.

All of the missionaries on Dr. Stafford’s mission in the Congo are now in quarantine, out of an abundance of caution.

They will be moved to Germany for treatment soon.

MarketWatch has more:

Peter Stafford was exposed while treating patients at Nyankunde Hospital in Bunia, a city in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has reported many cases of Bundibugyo virus, a rare type of Ebola virus. He was tested by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Stafford is one of three medical missionaries with Serge — a nonprofit based in Jenkintown, Penn. — who were exposed to the virus. The other two physicians — Rebekah Stafford, who is Peter Stafford’s wife, and Patrick LaRochelle — are both asymptomatic, according to Serge. They are all in quarantine. The Staffords have four young children in Congo with them.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday that the U.S. plans to transport all seven Americans to Germany.

The worrisome outbreak of the Bundibugyo virus has sickened at least 336 people and killed 88. So far, only 10 cases have been confirmed. Over the weekend, the World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern, only the ninth time it has done so in the last 20 years.

The outbreak is centered in Congo’s Ituri Province, a conflict-heavy region where people often cross the border into Uganda and South Sudan.

Once the Americans arrive in Germany, the plan is to treat them with experimental monoclonal antibodies. There are no approved vaccines or therapeutics for this strain of Ebola, and researchers who study Bundibugyo virus say there has been little interest from federal agencies in funding their work. However, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals said Monday that its Food and Drug Administration-approved monoclonal antibody for the Zaire Ebola virus may work against the Bundibugyo strain.

While terrible, the outbreak is not being considered a pandemic situation.

Authorities believe the Ebola outbreak is manageable, and that the risk to the public in the United States is very low.

Per USA Today:

“To the American public, the risk to the United States remains low,” Dr. Satish Pillai, the incident manager for the agency’s Ebola response, told reporters on a May 18 media briefing. The WHO said the spread doesn’t yet meet pandemic levels under international health regulations.