Second Dallas nurse infected with Ebola flew on plane with fever before reporting symptoms

(NaturalNews) A second nurse at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas has tested positive for the Ebola virus, as state and federal health officials grapple with containing the disease following serious missteps by the government's infectious disease agency.

To make matters worse, The Washington Post reported, the worker had a fever of 99.5° F before going aboard a commercial airliner on October 13, two days before her diagnosis and a day before she reported her symptoms to supervisors and was tested:

Even though there appeared to be little risk for the other people on that flight, she should not have traveled that way, Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said during a news conference....

"She should not have flown on a commercial airline," Frieden said.

Reports said that the worker flew on a Frontier Airlines jet from Cleveland to Dallas-Fort Worth with more than 130 passengers and crew. Frieden said she did not experience nausea or vomiting while on the flight, so any risk of contracting Ebola is "extremely low" (more on that claim in a moment).

Business Insider identified the passenger as Amber Jay Vinson, 29. She was reportedly in Akron to visit family, according to Ohio state officials. Vinson was part of the team that cared for recently deceased Thomas Eric Duncan, the Liberian national who brought Ebola to the country in late September. Another member of that team, 26-year-old Nina Pham, tested positive for Ebola two days earlier; she is already receiving treatment.

'Ill but clinically stable'

The Post further reported that there was concern among federal health officials about Vinson's boarding of an airliner:

[T]he fact that she boarded a commercial flight raises the question of how much the other 50 health-care workers who entered Duncan's room could have traveled or moved around in recent days. The CDC recommends controlled movement on private flights or vehicles for people who may have been exposed to Ebola, Frieden said.

"We will, from this moment forward, ensure that no individual monitored for exposure undergoes travel in any way other than controlled movement," Frieden told reporters.

Additionally, he said the agency would partner with state and local officials to enforce that restriction.

Thus far, CDC and other health officials say it is unclear how both Pham and Vinson were actually infected, but as Natural News has reported, the "maximum" incubation period of 21 days is actually closer to double that, according to the World Health Organization.

That makes sense, given the fact that Frieden says he believes the two became infected before a containment team from the CDC arrived in recent days.

Transfer to Atlanta

Duncan was placed in isolation Sept. 28; the CDC did not arrive until two days later, Sept. 30, reports said, the day he was actually diagnosed.

Pham and Vinson, meanwhile, both took care of Duncan during that period and had "extensive contact" with the Liberian national, who reportedly was also not exhibiting symptoms when he flew back to Dallas from his native country in mid-September. During his sickness though, when hospital workers were caring for him, Duncan experienced significant vomiting and diarrhea.

The Post reported that Vinson is currently being treated at Texas Health Presbyterian but is slated to be transferred to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta for additional treatment, the CDC -- which is also based in Atlanta -- told reporters. Frieden described her condition as "ill but clinically stable."

The Post added:

While visiting Ohio, she stayed with three family members who are employees of Kent State University, the school said in a statement.... She did not actually visit the campus, Kent State President Beverly Warren said in the school's statement. The three family members have been asked to stay off of the school's campus and self-monitor for the next 21 days.

Learn all these details and more at the FREE online Pandemic Preparedness course at www.BioDefense.com

Sources:

http://www.businessinsider.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://www.reuters.com

http://science.naturalnews.com