Overview
- The Public Health Agency of Canada will deny entry to foreign nationals who visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the past 21 days, with the rule taking effect at 11:59 p.m. EDT on Monday, July 20.
- Air carriers flying to Canada have been ordered to refuse boarding to affected travellers under an interim order issued under the Aeronautics Act.
- Canadian citizens, permanent residents and people registered under the Indian Act who recently visited the DRC will still be allowed to return and must undergo health screening and a mandatory 21-day self-isolation period.
- The move marks a shift from Canada’s May policy of universal 21-day self-isolation for recent DRC travellers and follows similar U.S. aviation restrictions; officials say the health risk to Canadians remains low and no travel-related cases have been detected in Canada.
- Global health agencies warn travel bans can stigmatize communities and hamper outbreak response as the DRC epidemic grows beyond 2,100 reported cases with evidence that the true toll and chains of transmission may be substantially larger, stressing the need for more beds, staff and funding.