{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20141105185329/http://www.vitter.senate.gov/newsroom/press/vitter-demands-answers-from-cdc-about-sick-passenger-who-arrived-at-port-of-new-orleans-from-west-africa", "Vitter Demands Answers from CDC about Sick Passenger Who Arrived at Port of New Orleans from West Africa", "2014-11-04", "2014", "2014-11", "Republican", "House", "LA", "David Vitter", "V000127", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "Vitter Demands Answers from CDC about \u201cSick Passenger\u201d Who Arrived at Port of New Orleans from West Africa\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTuesday, November 4, 2014\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t(Metairie, La.) \u2013 U.S. Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) today sent a letter to the director of the Centers for Disease Control\u2019s (CDC) demanding answers about a \u201csick passenger\u201d on a ship originating from Liberia that arrived in the port of New Orleans. Over the weekend, the CDC notified congressional offices of the passenger but indicated that the patient was not considered to be of any concern for Ebola. Vitter wants answers on how they handled the rest of the passengers on board, why no one was quarantined, and what protocols are in place to protect Louisiana health care workers.\n\u201cThis lack of urgency is exactly why people have zero confidence in the Obama Administration\u2019s response to Ebola,\u201d Vitter said. \u201cIt\u2019s their responsibility to take absolutely every precaution to ensure that Louisianians are not put in danger.\u201d\nVitter has called for the Administration to impose immediate travel restrictions and highlights how in 1976, there was an Ebola virus outbreak in Kinshasa, Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo [DRC]). When the virus began to spread in the region, the United States along with Zaire and other governments quarantined 275,000 people in the affected region and imposed travel restrictions.\nOn October 17, 2014, Vitter along with Rep. Scott Garrett (R-N.J.) called on House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to have congress reconvene to address the threat raised by the Ebola virus. Read more here.  Vitter\u2019s letter to the CDC today is below.\nNovember 4, 2014\nDirector Tom Frieden  Office of the Director  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  1600 Clifton Road  Atlanta, GA 30329-4027\nDear Director Frieden,\nI write with serious concerns regarding the Centers for Disease Control\u2019s (CDC) most recent notice informing Louisiana Congressional offices that a sick passenger from a ship originating from Liberia arrived in the port of New Orleans this weekend. What I find alarming is the CDC determined the passenger had a fever, a common symptom of Ebola, the passenger was not placed in the agency\u2019s quarantine program.\nThe CDC\u2019s response to Ebola has been disastrous by many metrics. Your agency has failed to put systems in place to equip health care workers with the resources to protect themselves, patients, and the public from this deadly virus. Weeks after America\u2019s initial Ebola scare, 80 percent of registered nurses surveyed by the National Nurses United said their hospital has not communicated to them any policy regarding potential admission of patients infected by Ebola, 87 percent said their hospital has not provided education on Ebola, and one-third said their hospital lacks sufficient supplies to protect health care workers. Experts have also said that airport screenings for fevers and other symptoms are largely ineffective.\nThis creates a major void of adequate preventative care and protections. And it means that whenever an individual comes to the United States with any potential exposure and displays Ebola symptoms, the CDC has an obligation to follow every precaution and place such person in the quarantine program.\nThe CDC\u2019s mission is to increase our nation\u2019s health security by conducting critical science and providing health information that protects our nation against dangerous health threats. But based on the CDC\u2019s response this week in the Port of New Orleans, I believe your agency has been incredibly incompetent and put the health of Louisianans at risk.\nGiven the critical nature of preparing Louisiana hospitals and health care providers with an effective Ebola response, I ask that you respond to the following questions by no later than November 7, 2014.\n1. Did the CDC evaluate all passengers on the ship that originated in Liberia?  2. Specifically, what tests did the CDC perform while these passengers were under evaluation?  3. Why did the CDC ignore its own recommendations to place individuals with possible exposure and Ebola-like symptoms, such as a fever, in the quarantine program?  4. Will the CDC conduct follow-up tests for these passengers to ensure they do not display Ebola-like symptoms during the 21-day incubation period?  5. Has the CDC given additional resources including best practices, specific protocol, and the necessary supplies to protect Louisiana health care workers in case any of these passengers are eventually diagnosed with Ebola?\nSincerely, David Vitter  United States Senator\n-30-", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20141105185329/http://www.vitter.senate.gov/newsroom/press/vitter-demands-answers-from-cdc-about-sick-passenger-who-arrived-at-port-of-new-orleans-from-west-africa"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.496362965553999, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}