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Colorado Health Officials Follow Strict CDC Ebola Guidelines

DENVER (CBS4)- Health officials in Colorado say hospitals across the state follow strict Centers for Disease Control guidelines for treating patients who may have been exposed to Ebola.

A patient has been in isolation at Denver Health Medical Center for three days while being monitored for Ebola.

Denver Health Medical Center
Denver Health Medical Center (credit: CBS)

Those who travel to Colorado from West Africa will be on CDC radar. Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone are Ebola hot spots and those arriving from there will undergo a health screening at five airports across the U.S. Travelers without symptoms leave with an Ebola care kit knowing they will be watched for at least three weeks.

"We are all working together to protect the health of the public," said Jefferson County Public Health spokeswoman Christine Billings.

Billings coordinates emergency preparedness for Jeffco Public Health.

Jeffco has monitored seven travelers for Ebola for 21 days each. Statewide there have been about 100 travelers monitored since August 2014. When they enter the U.S. the Colorado Health Department is notified and then the local health department.

"All the ones we've had in Jeffco have fallen into the low risk category," said Billings.

Jeffco is the first health department in Colorado to have a traveler hospitalized and tested for Ebola. The individual had reported two daily temperature readings voluntarily.

Ebola Test
(credit: CBS)

"We have not had a situation where we have had problems with a traveler not being willing to comply," said Billings.

There may have been a breakdown in protocol. When the Arvada resident was hospitalized with a fever it was made public.

Jeffco Health Director Dr. Mark Johnson says the family was upset and some parents kept their children out of school.

Johnson wants residents of Jefferson County to know there is no Ebola in Jefferson County. The patient tested negative for the virus. Another test to confirm that may be done in the next few days.

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