frieden's efforts at the cdc. we work with him on numerous efforts in the last five years and he has shown himself to be an effective leader and strong communicator and i appreciate the quick actions that he has taken in response to this incident. i am encouraged to see that dr. frieden has appointed dr. bell to oversee laboratory safety protocols and procedures. this investigation has shown us that cdc needs to change its safety culture. i hope that dr. bell can help instill a new mindset at the agency. still, i am concerned that it took exposure of dozens of cdc staff to anthrax to finally spur cdc to action. so we want answers from the cdc about how this incident was allowed to happen in the first place, and i look forward to hearing from afis and gao about the problems they've identified in the past, how cdc should implement their recommendations moving forward, and what role congress should play in making sure that happens. mr. chairman, this is not the first hearing on the subject. we've looked at it before.

first, 2014 cdc anthrax incident. second, broader biosafety and biosecurity issues and cdc bioweapons agents laboratories. also known as select agent laboratories. and, three, broader biosafety and biosecurity issues at the more than 1,000 other government, academic and corporate select agent laboratories across the united states that are regulated by the cdc. my assessments are based on information published in cdc hhs, oig, usda, oig, gao documents, published press reports, and my knowledge of biosafety and biosecurity standards when i work with bacterial pathogens. i turn first to the 2014 cdc anthrax incident. i note the 2014 anthrax incident did not involve one violation in one laboratory but instead involved an entire series of violations. the 2014 cdc anthrax incident involved multiple violations of biosafety and biosecurity recommendations in each tleef different cdc laboratories. there were seven distinct violations in total. had any of three violations in one cdc laboratory not occurred, the incident would n

respect -- what the cdc's response has been to the outbreak. it profiles some of the cdc officials that have gone to africa to investigate. what exactly are they hoping to accomplish ac? have cdc detectives also known as epidemic intelligence officers. it's march. but they have announced it is sending a search of 50 more disease specialists to guinea, liberia, sierra leone, and nigeria to fight be ebola outbreak. following up with them and if someone is sick, they can be isolated and treated. if not, they are informed of their risk and workers can follow up with them. we know where the outbreak emerged from? >> preliminary research is showing that it is possible that the outbreak started in decca do -- a village in guinea close to the borders of sierra leone. that is why it is possible that it spread from there to the other countries. >> you mentioned the epidemic intelligence services. what kind of person joins that service? >> a two-year postgraduate program and these are people who are doctors, phd's, veterinarians, pharmacist. people that h

>> you can store the cdc website. we have apps, including the yellow book, the bible for anyone who wants to travel anywhere in the world. what to do, what to worry about. 1800 cdc info. >> good evening. i have a question regarding the spread of open call for which has now in southern california, there are outbreaks in certain areas. recently i had friends fly from lax with a woman infected, and i would like to know what regulatory body would have input or control, or authority guys late people, because so many are exposed. rushend has spent a year to the hospital several times. when this one was coughing, she was whooping. she was sitting between them, both were infected. what can we do as citizens who happen to travel quite a bit to put pressure on those individuals or that particular authorities to control this? it seems to be getting out of hand. during bird flu when i was flying back and forth i would see a of individuals coming from china or parts of the asian continent wearing masks. that?n't we insist upon wha

cdc operates quarantines. but the solution is not to try to build a perfect moat around the country. other people will be safer and we will be safer as well. i don't know if you want to say any last words. >> we are out of time. >> i think i'm going to sleep better than i would knowing these incredibly talented people [inaudible] [applause] >> thank you. i am so excited to welcome everyone here. i work with an organization called global health court. we bring new talent to the field of global health. we work with amazing young leaders to bring their voices. which is why i love the aspen new voices fellowship read it ensures we have diverse thinkers raising voices to affect social change. we'll have the opportunity to listen to great stories and meet 10 great innovators who will bring them to live for us. storytelling is a powerful tool. any great storyteller is a great teacher, which is something i knew growing up. i had a mother who was a teacher and librarian. sometimes defined seem like it would never stop

>> you can store the cdc website. we have apps, including the yellow book, the bible for anyone who wants to travel anywhere in the world. what to do, what to worry about. 1800 cdc info. >> good evening. i have a question regarding the spread of open call for which has now in southern california, there are outbreaks in certain areas. recently i had friends fly from lax with a woman infected, and i would like to know what regulatory body would have input or control, or authority guys late people, because so many are exposed. rushend has spent a year to the hospital several times. when this one was coughing, she was whooping. she was sitting between them, both were infected. what can we do as citizens who happen to travel quite a bit to put pressure on those individuals or that particular authorities to control this? it seems to be getting out of hand. during bird flu when i was flying back and forth i would see a of individuals coming from china or parts of the asian continent wearing masks. that?n't we insist upon wha

sanjay gupta takes us inside the cdc.e a look. >> reporter: this is the cdc's emergency operation center. think of it as the nerve center in the response to the ebola outbreak. after a few minutes after i walked in, phones started buzzing. >> the level just went up to level 1 just in the last couple of minutes. what does that mean? >> what that means is just more people and more resources dedicated to the response. >> reporter: in that room, you could feel a quiet determination and a sense of urgency. let me give you a little bit of an idea of how this all works. what you're looking at is what the cdc looks at, a map of the world, trying to figure out what infectious diseases are happening and where they're happening. as you might imagine, a lot of focus on ebola right now. they're tracking that as well realtime. they've been doing it since march. take a look in here. this really jumped out. in mid-may, they thought things were basically under control. but then look at what happens at the beginning of june. everything tak

with the nearby cdc. dr. jay very key is an infectious disease specialist at emory university hospital. he says he's confident that the facility can handle the disease. >> i truly believe in the practices we have in place and i have no specific my personal safety or my colleagues. >> the doctors will wear protective suits. ebola virus can only be transmitted through close contact and bodily fluids. cdc points out the chance of ebola spreading to the workers and operators in the us is highly unlikely. doctors say brantly's chances of survival at emory are much higher than they would be in west avenue from today. >> we can deliver a higher level of care and substantially higher level of support to optimize the likelihood those patients will survive. >> doctors say there known cures for vaccines for the virus they can only help the body fight the disease itself. >> well, for now the cdc says the only way to fight ebola is to stop it at its source. the agency's emergency

investigation a few months ago found that the cdc had serious security lapses in atlanta. a federal laboratory had anthrax in unrestricted hallways and up to 84 people were unknowingly exposed to anthrax. so sorry if i don't have very much faith in the cdc. >> john what about this, the world health organization calls it an international health risk and they said there's going to be extraordinary event. do the ladies of the view know more about ebola than the world health organization and the cdc. >> there is going to be a terrible event but it's going to happen primarily in the area of west africa where they don't have the modern life savings medicines that we have here in the u.s. i do agree it's government's job to protect us from life threatening contagious diseases but they're not going into starbucks. they're being quarinteened. >> how do you know? >> we don't. the border is not secure jonathan. we don't know who is coming over. >> there's up to a 21 someday incubation period for this disease. someone could get on a flight and end up in the united states infected mill

the cdc is sending 50 more people to the region in the next month. dr. meredith dixon just returned from two tours in the remote part of guinea. >> one day we were removed from that area because there were rumors that a group of young men would be coming to destroy the treatment center because they wanted to destroy ebola. >> reporter: she says that situation never escalated. but it shows the kind of hurdles and confusion the health workers face there. here in the united states, a different sort of confusion. different questions. for example, if ebola is not airborne, then why were there such extraordinary precautions taken for dr. kent brantley and miss wrightbol? turns out it was an abundance of caution rather than a necessity. >> we're pretty confident that any large hospital could handle an ebola case if one were to show up at their doorstep, using traditional isolation rooms with negative pressure room and with traditional droplet and respiratory precautions. >> reporter: and while i suited up in multiple layers when i was in guinea just earlier thi

this is the cdc's emergency operation center. as the nerve center of its response to the ebola outbreak. just a few minutes after i walked in, phones and blackberries started buzzing everywhere. >> while we were here the activation level went up to level 1. just in the last couple minutes. what does that mean? >> what that means is just more people and more resources dedicated to the response. >> reporter: in that room, you could feel a quiet determination and a sense of urgency. what you're looking at is what the cdc looks at, a map of the world, trying to figure out what infectious diseases are happening and where they're happening. as you might imagine a lot of focus on ebola right now, tracking that as well real-time, they've been doing it since march. take a look in here. this really jumped out at me. mid may they thought things were basically under control. look what happens at the beginning of june. everything takes off. this is on its way becoming the worst ebola outbreak in history. dr. steven monroe is helping lead the

some samples were sent to the cdc. a man from saudi arabia, who died from those symptoms, did not have the virus. the man, 40 years old, he died last week after returning from a region in africa that had seen an outbreak of the virus. cdc is conducting additional tests to further confirm the negative results and see if another virus might be to blame. to date, he was the only person in saudi arabia infected. outbreak in west africa was the topic of a recent hearing on capitol hill. the head of the cdc testified about what they're doing to monitor the situation. the committee also heard from two missionary groups working in west africa, that included two american to later contracted ebola. they are now being monitored and treated in the u.s. so far, over 900 people have died. this hearing is 2.5 hours. >> the subcommittee will come to order. good afternoon to everyone. i called this emergency hearing during recess to address a grave answer is health threat which has in recent weeks ripped the mass media and heighten pub

cdc is 100% behind this. if anyone has fever who has travelled to africa, the next question is we should take that person in the hospitals and isolate them so we cut down the aggressiveness. >> i think a lot of the concerns are human error. you cannot guarantee that one doctor could potentially make a slipup. doctors are not perfect. so we're talking about human error and also security risks because this could potentially be used as a weapon if in the wrong hands. >> your point is absolutely well taken. ebola is known as a biological weapon. what it does, if the virus comes into your system, takes over the immune system, then starts traveling to all the other organs, kidneys, liver, and what it does is it basically makes organ failure, it causes clotting in the major areas but it causes massive bleeding all around your body and you can die. it's true, it's a biological weapon and the government is looking into it, we recentlied a the mistake at the cdc where they send the virus from one lab to another one. >>

this is the cdc's emergency operation center. think of it as the nerve center of its response to the ebola outbreak. just a few minutes after i walked in, phones and blackberries started buzzing everywhere. >> while we were here, the activation level just went up to level one, just in the last couple of minutes. what does that mean? >> what that means is just more people and more resources dedicated to the response. >> reporter: in that room you could feel a quiet determination and a sense of urgency. >> what you're looking at is what the cdc looks at, a map of the world trying to figure out what infectious diseases are happening and where they are mention. as you can imagine, a lot of focus on ebola, tracking that realtime. they have been doing it since march. take a look at it. mid-may, they thought things are basically under control and look what happens at the beginning of june. everything takes off, on its way of becoming one of the worst ebola outbreaks in history. >> reporter: dr. steven monroe is helping lead the cdc's eb

we've been talking all day about the new alert from the cdc. you happen to be there when the decision was made and announcement was made. give folks what this means and what it looks like. >> first of all it's a pretty unusual step. i mean this has happened in the past, for example, during h1n1, the cdc was at level 1 then, and before that hurricane katrina. just to give you an idea of how frequent or infrequent it is. it's mobilizing a lot more manpower if you will. at the cdc headquarters in atlanta but mobilizing people to go into the field in west africa, they will have 50 more people going there over the next several weeks. so, you know, that -- these are part of what happens -- sort of thing that happens during a level one. i think it's a question of saying, we are focusing on a lot of things as an agency, now we're going to focus most of our attention on ebola and may pull in people who have high levels of expertise from other agencies into the cdc to help that focus as well. >> even a few more resources too, sanjay, in terms of finances

and emory, cdc, really is doing a great job. really appreciate your help with this. >> listen, we want to get the word out. certainly this is a story that has drawn attention around the world and a lot of people are very concerned, of course, about the implications for having the ebola virus, you know, technically here in the united states, even though the doctor is saying the chances for it spreading here is very, very slim. but certainly a situation where the world health organization is calling a major concern because as we've been pointing out, more than 700 people have died. and it's a deadly virus that is spreading in a very big way. for our viewers there, you can see the police car there. the ambulance has stopped. we expect that the doctor will be transported from that ambulance to the special facility in that isolation unit. from what we're hearing and what we're reading is that these specially trained individuals will be having to wear special suits and masks and gloves, of course, if they're going to come in contact w

we take an inside look at the cdc. >> reporter: as ebola spreads cdc has issued it's highest alert, level one. inside the cdc there is an emergency operation center. it's rarely activated. when it is, it means the situation is dangerous. the scientists here are monito monitoring the ebola outbreak and planning their next move to stop the spread of the infection. >> reporter: they say you know how to stop the infection were moving around west africa. >> this virus is transmitted person to person. the way to stop the outbreak is to interpret the chai interrupt the chain. >> reporter: this shows where ebola is infecting here in west africa. easier said than done. the cdc compares this to a marathon with unprecedented obstacles, and it's work has just begun. >> there is reports over there of citizens not going to hospitals because they think it's unsafe. they feel like--some of them feel like they're being lied to. some are leaving bodies on the streets. how do you change that? >> one of the real challenges is this health communication, hea health education component of this. we understand th

tonight we go inside the war room at the cdc. >>> out of nowhere. a violent deluge cuts off entire towns, stranding hundreds of kids at summer camp. >>> james brady, remembering the man struck by a bullet meant for the president, who later become a champion for gun safety. >>> and kelly tough. the pride of buffalo in the fight of his life opening up about what inspires him to stay strong. "nbc nightly news" begins now. >>> good evening. tonight in new york city, camera crews started descending on mount sinai hospital based on a report that a patient had arrived there with symptoms that were potentially consistent with the ebola virus. the patient had recently traveled to west africa. officials have just held a press conference. they say ebola is unlikely in this case. but this is the kind of thing that's going to keep happening in this country. the new york incident one of nearly two dozen cases of suspicion of ebola symptoms in emergency rooms in this country in just the past week. in a moment we'll go to dr. nancy snyderman who will take us throug

the cdc director said ebola has to be stopped at the source in west africa and that is why the cdc is sending an additional 50 staff members to the ground there by the end of next week. live in washington, kyla campbell, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> and the remains of some of the victims of the jonestown mass cults murder suicide have been found -- cut murder/suicide have been found. where and how they got there more than three decades after the massacre. >> and the barricades are going up for the outside lands music festival. why there is a special eye on security this year. sure... hey canyou bet! this? that's our new interactive speaker wall. 'sup? thinks it's a speak-ing wall. this can even dim your lights. your 3-d-printed girlfriend will love that. real mature. there you go. a laser drone for cats. i wish i had lasers. i don't. pew pew pew... the new radioshack is finally here. the store of your past is now the store of your future. come see one of our remodeled stores and get a free portable power charger with a $15 purchase. . >>> we're following new developments stemming from the

immediate results and report it to the cdc . >> i'm all for that.hat is not the way it is being done. to be clear, blood samples sense to atlanta, then tests are done, there is a day or two delay. that is how it is handled. i prefer it were handled on the site. chances it is small, someone in weswest africa now, they are rez these stories, and they have fever and diarrhea, and they say, maybe i have ebola, and they go to the hospital, and say, how do we know they don't have ebola. it will probably be negative. lou: the hospital in atlanta, emory hospital, now treating dr. brantley and will soon be treating the nurse, how safe do you think that is? did politics play a part in it with the african summit, we're watching something manageed by cdc . >> answer your second first, poly i think that approximately ticks did play a -- i think that politics did play a role, cdc report along with it, now they are making it as safe as possible, having said that, i think it is safe, cdc did not call shots on this they went with it, but they made it safe because th

this is the cdc's emergency operations center.hink of it as the nerve center of its response to the ebola outbreak. just a few minutes after i walked in, phones and blackberries started buzzing everywhere. while we were here, the activation level just went up to level one just in the last couple minutes. what does that mean? >> what that means is just more people and more resources dedicated to the response. >> reporter: in that room, you could feel a quiet determination and a sense of urgency. what's you're looking sat what the cdc looks at, a map of the world, trying to figure out what infectious diseases are happening and where they're happening. as you might imagine, a lot of focus on ebola right now. they're tracking that as well real time. they've been doing it since march. take a look in here. this really jumped out at me. mid-may they thought things were basically under control. but then look what happens at the beginning of june. everything takes off. this is on its way to becoming the worst ebola outbreak in history. dr.

the cdc now expanding to 50 experts in the region. >> i'm very concerned. this is going to take an intensive, long effort. this is a marathon, not a sprint. >> reporter: around the world, mounting jitters over air travel. there are direct flights from the impact zone to more than 30 countries. in china special airport scanners check the temperatures of arriving passengers. in this airport anyone with a temperature exceeding 99.5 degrees gets a blood test. here in the united states, immigration officers scan faces for signs of illness. incoming pilots required to report passengers who appear ill to cdc quarantine stations in 20 ports of entry. this unassuming office here may be the first place the cdc takes someone they're worried about. they put them in here in this room with a bed, close the door and keep them in isolation. >> this is our go bag. we take this to our response. >> reporter: trained medical officers based in the terminal prepared to rush to any passenger exhibiting signs of illness. >> you are normal, 93.5. >> without even touching me you got

develop cdc modeled after the american cdc to respond to the outbreaks recognizing that individual nations don't have the resources they need do this. >> today we got our first upclose look at the aircraft that brought the two american missionaries back to the u.s. for treatment. phoenix air out of cartersville, georgia outfitted this gulf stream 3 with all the equipment you expect in intensive care unit with the added protection of isolation tent carrying the ebola patients. after each flight, the tent was sanitized, folded, incinerated and replaced with a completely new tent. company officials say they had no hesitation about accepting the mission of transporting ebola patients. cheryl? >> here's the question for most americans nowsa the story continues, what measures are in place to prevent the spread of ebola here in the united states? >> the cdc has quarantine stations in place at international airports and points of entry where you see international passengers coming through. they can quarantine people they suspect of having the virus and hospitals have been warned to check patients.

the cdc has a phenomenal care record, this is a public health problem, the cdc is our public health agency. they have a central role to play. the country is in the midst of digitizing our records system, we have seen phenomenal progress in adopting any use of electronic health records. that has a lot of potential but the potential won't be realized unless those tools are focused on improving patient safety. the tools themselves won't automatically do it and we need to make that a priority and there are specific things the administration and congress can do in that ariane the third is incentives. we can't continue to have unsafe medical care be a regular part of the way we do business in health care and care is an important role to play. medicare has an important role to play. the aca takes important steps but we can do more. we have a cadre of physicians and nurses in this country who are incredibly well trained, dedicated, caring individuals who go to work every day trying to do the best for their patients. we have a system that fails them and a system that fails the patients who expect a

in mecca according to the cdc 75,000 die annually from infections. now we already know a lot about how to reduce these deaths. the simplest things like better hand washing, room cleaning led to reduce these infections. boston children's hospital which treats some of the sickest children in the world has had terrific success to implement steps like these. boston children's has not had one single case of ventilator associated ammonia in the cardiac ico in nearly -- i see with nearly two years and not as simple catheter ut i in the medical icu for over two years. knowing how to make patients safer unfortunately it is not happening everywhere we need a system in place. so my question is this. knu help us understand why certain health care entities have not yet adopted straightforward proven techniques to reduce these infections? >> fundamentally that question in front of us is how we have an industry where we have cheap and easy interventions that save lives, save money and not every single person uses every single day? there is a disconnect. it strikes

and we've heard the cdc mishandling anthrax smallpox are you absolutely confident that the cdc will makesure this virus is handled properly and will not be spread? >> there were lapses in our laboratory. we identified them and reported them before anyone got harmed and before there was any release of anything into the community. but that shows the importance of being meticulous with infection control. we are doing that in our labs now. we are working around the clock to make them among the safest in the world. but it shows for healthcare workers, taking care of people with ebola or other infectious diseases it's important to beth infection control. ebola is not one of the most infectious diseases but because it's so deadly that the stakes are high that healthcare workers need to have a healthy fear and what can happen and turn that fear into action to make sure they take precaution and that everything is followed. >> we know this is a busy time for you doctor, thank you for joining us. >> thank you. and we want to turn to our own expert here at cbs news, dr. john lapook. thank you so muc

the cdc is sending 50 more people to the region in the next month. dr.xon just returned from two tours in the remote part of guinea. where she was trying to help control the outbreak. >> one day we were removed from that area because there were rumors that a group of young men would be coming to destroy the treatment center because they wanted to destroy ebola. >> reporter: she says that situation never escalated. but it shows the kind of hurdles and confusion the health workers face there. here in the united states, a different sort of confusion. different questions. for example, if ebola is not airborne, then why were there such extraordinary precautions taken for dr. kent brantley and miss wrightbol? turns out it was an abundance of caution rather than a necessity. >> we're pretty confident that any large hospital could handle an ebola case if one were to show up at their doorstep, using traditional isolation rooms with negative pressure room and with traditional droplet and respiratory precautions. >> reporter: and while i suited up in multiple layer

>> cdc basically blew the whistle on ourselves. we identified two problems, in two different laboratories that were really serious and shouldn't have happened. we took immediate action to stop it. we've continued the testing in the ebola response hasn't interfered with our response. it does emphasize how important it is to follow protocols. >> looking now at the specially equipped plane that two american aid workers were on when they were brought back to the u.s. the two are being treated in atlanta. let's get more on the ebola outbreak from fox news medical analyst dr. marc siegel. good evening. >> hello. >> the cdc emergency operation center is now at what's called a level 1 activation. what does that mean? >> bret, that means in addition to the epidemic intelligence officers they're sending over there, more than 50, they're bringing the whole cdc to the level of activation to support the activity in west africa. that means everything from those intelligence officers to translators of french to go to guinea. the whole agency is g

i just caution our friends at cdc. if we kill technology and innovation which is in essence of what some are attempting to do right at the beginning, just out, no more of an innovation is not going to play a role and reducing the amount of americans smoke. it is just not permitted at think it is safe to say that when i look at diabetes today i look at other things that we would consider a public health academic pahang innovation would give us the ability to do it. i don't think it's going to be by going out and limiting whether they can go to mcdonald's and by the ots order. the cdc is not proposing that payment will be innovation, driving technology, coming up with products that will allow us to turn around the problem that they've got. think that is what we're starting about here. i look forward to the work you're doing. >> thank you, senator. but start another round. last month's proposal to expand the authority to include more tobacco products marked an essential step forward i was disappointed that the rule did no

the cdc now on the highest alert. the world health organization considering an international public health emergency. let's go "outfront." >>> good evening, everyone i'm erin burnett. we begin with the breaking news. the president of the united states just wrapping up a news conference. he used the strongest language ever against hamas. >> it is important to remember that hamas acts extraordinarily irresponsibly when it is deliberate deliberately siting rocket launchers in population centers. >> i want to get to jim acosta who was at the news conference. what more did the president say? that was very direct at the heart of the matter here, hamas using human shields. >> absolutely that's right. he started off by talking about he was asked about israel and whether its activities in gaza have been proportionate and justified, and he basically went right after hamas and accused the militant group of being what he called extraordinarily irresponsible in launching rocket attacks from certain areas, suggested that was the re

>> i think the cdc is keeping them under very, very tight isolation. the people treating them are probably wearing the equivalent of a space suit. they're certainly protecting their hands, eyes, and may be wearing respirators and keeping them in an area where there won't be other -- other patients aren't going to be kept. probably having a negative pressure room might be a good idea, too. >> the argument for bringing them here is to get to the bottom of the ebola thing here. hospitals are better, doctors such as yourself are just better at what they do. so, that is one argument for bringing them here, so they can study it here. but what is to prevent me from fearing that the genie is out of the petri dish here and it could get bad fast. >> there might be people here we don't know about which are of greater concern than the one wes know about, and the recent scandal at the cdc if difficulty containing pathogens. these diseases are just a big threat, and so we really need to be very concerned, and more concerned about the ones that are not under the cdc'

the cdc is not perfect either. so it's not just human error, it's the cdc. with this, there is no room for mistakes. stand by. we have more on this. coming up, weighing the risks of a possible ebola outbreak in the united states. should you be concerned? we're getting a flood of your twitter questions. so the doctors weigh in on that next. we'll read some of your concerns to the doctors right after the break. wondering what that is? that, my friends, is everything. and with the quicksilver card from capital one, you earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on everything you purchase. not just "everything at the hardware store." not "everything, until you hit your cash back limit." quicksilver can earn you unlimited 1.5% cash back on everything you could possibly imagine. say it with me -- everything. one more time, everything! and with that in mind... what's in your wallet? test. >>> the idea of having a patient for one reason or other to come here for care given the conditions that we have for isolating and taking care of patients, the risk is extraordinarily small th

the cdc expanding to 50 experts in the region. >> i am very concerned.o take an intensive long effort. this is a marathon not a print. >> reporter: around the world mounting jitters over air travel. there are direct flights from the impact zone to more than 30 countries. in china special airport scanners check the temperatures of arriving passengers. in this airport any one with a temperature exceeding 99.5 degrees gets a blood test. here in the united states immigration officers scan faces for signs of illness. incoming pilots required to report passengers who appear ill to cdc quarantine stations in 20 ports of entry. this unassuming office may be the first place cdc takes some one they're worried about. put them in the room with the bed. close the door and keep them in the isolation. >> this is our go bag. >> reporter: trained medical officers based in the terminal prepared to rush to any passenger exhibiting signs of illness. >> 97.5. >> without touching me you got a temperature. >> that's correct. >> reporter: the cdc saying americans should feel sa

so the cdc is pretty confident.w how much you'll get into with the president in this news conference, though. >> if you don't mind me pursuing something. it's raised hackles among the business community the president, the treasury department, a slap down the provision, aversion provision that takes, allows companies to take advantage of lower tax codes abroad and just by executive edict or in this case treasury department ruling disallows it makes its illegal. that's not sitting well. >> i can imagine. we'll cover it as well. i think it's a huge story. there's a potential -- >> wait a minute, are you invading my business nerdy turf? one at a time. >> i know. i know. they record my show. they watch yours over on that other channel. but, you know, it is a big deal. it's a big story, neil. the president could very well be asked about that. corporate taxes, how this administration is handling that is a huge story. but as you know also on the plate all these foreign policy hot spots blowing up. you have the situation in

what we're doing now at cdc is surging our response. we're going to put at least 50 health -- public health experts in the three countries in the next 30 days. because actually, we do know how to stop ebola. it's old-fashioned plain and simple public health. find the patients, make sure they get treated, find their contacts, track them, educate peectiontrol in hospitals. you do those things, but you have to do them really well, and ebola goes away. >> people who are looking at the events of the last couple of days are concerned even as the center for disease control is mishandling biochemicals and other agents and diseases at your own labs, have to be wondering about the ability of our health care system, the u.s. government, to be able to prevent a spread here particularly with those affected workers, two in total, hole be back in the united states. what can you say to deal with that concern? >> i certainly understand that occurs at cdc. we have lapses in our laboratories. fortunately no one was hurt. nothing was released into the labo

the cdc has issued the highest alert. some airlines suspends plights to contain the rest. 1700 have died and more than 900 have died. a priest contracted the virus was airlifted home to stain. six other staff at the same hospital where they worked have been infected and now the hospital have been shutdown. liberia and sarah lee own set up military blockades but there is more help coming. at left 50 health workers are being sent in the to the region by the cdk with backup support here at home will it be enough to stop the spread of the contagion? here is "america tonight" lori jane. >> reporter: as the death toll continues to inch towards 1,000 people in west africa. fear is also rising in the u.s. and overseas. in liberia some are abandoning the dead in the streets and in this case, a man close to passing. security check point have been set up. blocking people traveling to and from the capital to get supplies. so many are unindicated about the disease. unprepared and afraid. >> we can stop ebola. we know how to do it. it

the cdc raises its response to the highest level.e you inside the ebola war room as we standby for remarks from president obama. we expect him to talk about this deadly epidemic. we want o welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer, you're in "the situation room." >> this is cnn breaking news. >>> let's get to the breaking news. tonight the equivalent of a red alert in the ebola crisis. the cdc in atlanta, georgia, now ratcheting up emergency operation center to level one. that's the highest level in response to the biggest outbreak of the deadly disease in history. we're standing by for a news conference by president obama. we expect him to talk about the ebola crisis among other things he will be talking about the fe fears of the disease spreading from africa too the united states, to europe and elsewhere. our correspondents are standing by. they are covering all the breaking news here in the united states and around the world. as we await the president of the united states, let's go to our chie

the cdc has now increased the emergency response to the ebola epidemic reserved only for the worst outbreaks. >> hurricane warning in hawaii. a rare occurrence. two storms in a row. one right behind the other. and tonight millions are preparing. >> flight breach. how did a woman with no ticket, no boarding pass and no business flying on a plane manage to get on board and fly to l.a.? >> and an aspirin a day does it dramatically reduce the risk of cancer? dr. nancy snyderman tonight with the big medical headline. "nightly news" begins now. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with brian williams. >>> good evening. the centers for disease control tonight elevated the ebola virus to level 1 status. and here's what that means. it is their highest level of mobilization reserved for their largest scale response requiring an agency wide effort. because the outbreak is now officially out of control. and because it now extends to nigeria and has the potential to affect so many more lives. so far the ebola virus has taken 932 lives and this is a major escalation

i talked with a senior person at the cdc. i won't name her but she is a well-known person who told me that in the united states, if there was one person that had a level for infectious disease, they would have many hundreds of contacts to run down. there are no contacts being run down in liberia. i do not believe the liberian government, well-intentioned as they are, and i do believe they are, i just simply do not think that they have the capacity. i think that there needs to be something to augment their capacity. adding guineas to be some kind of a coordination unit. something with a bit more of an operational edge to it. but more is needed. they clearly do not have the capacity to contain it. that is the essential question. >> you worked on the outbreak of ebola a couple years ago? >> i was there during the outbreak and was not working with ebola. >> how does this compare to that outbreak. >> it was a sparsely populated rural area where they burrowed -- it burned itself out. they moved to the city so that when you look at

i talked with a senior person at the cdc. i won't name her but she is a well-known person who told me that in the united states, if there was one person that had a level for infectious disease, they would have many hundreds of contacts to run down. there are no contacts being run down in liberia. i do not believe the liberian government, well-intentioned as they are, and i do believe they are, i just simply do not think that they have the capacity. that there needs to be something to augment their capacity. adding guineas to be some kind of a coronation unit. something with a bit more of an operational edge to it. but more is needed. they clearly do not have the capacity to contain it. that is the essential question. let>> you worked on the outbreak of ebola a couple years ago? >> i was there during the outbreak and was not working with ebola. i how does this compare to that outbreak. >> it was a sparsely populated rural area where they burrowed itself out. city so that the when you look at a taxi or a bus, you wonder how the

higher level of, all right on part of this cdc. and they are asking, thinking about the two americans who have returned to this country, stkreubg en witstricten with - d the doctor is improving because of the experimental drug. and the nurse, who has ebold aher condition is described as weak but improving. is your outlook for them positive at-this-point? >> it is positive, we're guardedly optimistic, fingers crossed, said, we want the best for both. we hope and wish they will recover, steadly, and quickly. lou: talking about that activation, beyond emory of in university, atlanta, the east coast, in africa, right now, western africa. this ou outbreak we're told by every expert is now uncontrolled, and it is headed they know not where, they right now don't know how to get turn control. -- to get it under control, your thoughts, and your outlook? >> i think we know how. but the task is large. you have to go there, and find every case. and then bring them to medical care, that does two things it gives best kara, veil able to the patie

withs been reforms to $12.4 million to support cdc and the like. it is important to note that the outbreak in sierra leone and started, inably retrospect, earlier on. but the cases were identified late. for a couple of weeks, we have the outbreak and then it went down. the initial outbreaks one down. -- went down. one case can reignite the whole thing. that is what we have seen. it has been difficult to control. this investment has allowed us providewith unicef to 30 experts, additional operational support, 35 thousand sets of protective personal equipment and the basics. soap, water you read those things are important in this type of situation. usaid is closely coordinating its responses. the cdc has the lead in the response to the ebola outbreak. has been trulyn exemplary. i want to point that out. the coordination has been that weto make sure stop this outbreak. the have employed architecture of the u.s. government on the ground and the dart is now deployed and the deputy team leaders are in place. cdc leaders are responsible for the health and

but the cdc says that so far it has only been found in 10 african countries. ebola is extremely dangerous with a 90% death rate. here are some common questions in regards to the disease. >> reporter: >> reporter:ebola was first discovered in nineteen seventy-six in the democratic republic of the congo. since then, there have been occasional outbreaks, but the c-d-c says that so far the disease has only been found in ten african countries. no cases have been reported in the united states. >> reporter:ebola is extremely dangerous, with a ninety percent death rate and there is no cure. here are some common question about the stories... >> reporter:according to the cdc, an outbreak of ebola probably starts when a person comes in contact with an infected animal.. mostly likely bats. it's then spread between people through secretions or fluids. a health person can only get the disease by touching the bodily fluids of an infected person. the disease can also be spread through contaminated needles or surfaces >> reporter:hosptial staff can contract ebola if instrument

here at our lab at cdc, we will do the testing. information is decimated to doctors, health care systems and others in the health system in the u.s. >> again, just finally, with regard to dr. brandly or nancy writepol, you have no reservations of them coming back to the united states with the ebola virus? >> two questions. can they travel safely, for their own health. and the risk of transit and care here is kept to an absolute minimum. that's something very important to do. we will work closely with samaritans first and with emory to make sure that is done. >> the director of the cdc. thanks so much for joining us. appreciate it. jim, look, this has never happened before. it's historic in many ways. we've never had a patient with ebola in the western hemisphere. it's a little bit of interesting peek behind the curtain how some of those decisions were made, jim. >> no question. good to hear the preparations under way in case there are other people with the virus who don't know about it coming in on the many planes, traveling from t

the cdc is issuing the highest alert, level one.s is for the most serious public health emergencies. this is in response to the deadly virus in west africa. president obama is trying to keep everyone calm. >> despite the fact we have to take it seriously, it is important to remind ourselves, this is not an airborne disease. this is one that can be controlled and contained very effectively, if we use the right protocols. >> meantime, the fda approved the unapproved test for ebola. in terms of a vaccine, we don't have one. it's at least a year away. the two americans infected with ebola, they are showing signs of recovery, that is good news. in a hospital where they are being treated, they got an experimental serum. that may be working. in west africa, it's spreading with breathtaking speed. 1700 confirmed cases in guinea, nigeria, liberia and sierra leone. a state of emergency has been declared, troops called in to quarantine all the ebola victims. the impact is being felt globally. a man in saudi arabia died after visiting sierra le