On a related note, the news that the Dallas DA may prosecute Mr Duncan could be the wrong thing to do from a public health perspective. I think that will simply serve to stigmatize the sick (perhaps even Americans who get infected) and could drive infected people underground and that's the last thing you want. I don't think presecution is a deterrant at all to keeping infected people out of the US but it may change people's behavior in undesirable ways once they are here.
The priority should be to find everyone who is infected or potentially infected, ideally, before they become infectious. Facing punishment just delays that discovery process, making it more likely an infected person becomes infectious out in public.
I agree that it would be a very dumb move if the authorities in TX try to prosecute the gentleman. Driving people underground who think they have been exposed is exactly the last thing you want to do.
I find it difficult to believe that Mr. Duncan "knew" he had ebola. He was asymptomatic when he left Liberia. Even the blood tests apparently aren't definitive until about 3 days after you start showing symptoms. The NY Times
"Well" has some good info:
Q
Can a blood test show if a person has the Ebola virus before they are symptomatic?
A
With blood tests that we have now, no. In fact, in order to be fairly certain, you have to have the first symptom, which is a fever, for about three days before there’s enough virus coursing around in your blood for the blood test to be accurate.
What we should try to do is encourage people who have been potentially exposed (by recent travel in infected areas), AND have come down with a fever to report to an ER immediately and get checked out. This will be better for them, in that they can get appropriate care, and will also be better for the rest of us by minimizing the potential exposure of others.
EDIT: Note that the "Well" link has some other info about how long the virus can survive outside the body. (Short answer is it depends on how fast it dries out.)
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