Massachusetts hospital admitted possible Ebola patient, US selects 35 treatment centers

BOSTON (Christian Examiner) -- On Tuesday, Massachusetts General Hospital admitted a patient possibly exposed to the Ebola virus, the hospital said in a statement.

The patient, whose identity was not disclosed, is being treated in a "specially prepared area within the hospital," Mass General said, noting that the diagnosis has not yet been confirmed.

The worst outbreak of Ebola on record has killed more than 6,000 people, with the vast majority of cases in the West African nations of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

U.S. health officials on Tuesday designated 35 hospitals around the nation as Ebola treatment centers, but none are located in Massachusetts. Four hospitals were designated in California, one in Georgia, four in Chicago, three in Maryland, four in Minnesota, one in Nebraska, five in New York, one in New Jersey, two in Philadelphia, two in Texas, two in Virginia, three in Wisconsin and three in Wasington, D.C.

The hospitals were selected in such a manner that about 80 percent of the travelers entering this U.S. from areas with high ebola risk like West Africa should be within 200 miles of a treatment facility. More hospitals could be added to the list in the coming weeks.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have directed those returning from high-risk areas to take their temperature daily for 21 days to monitor for signs of the disease.

Over 3,000 people have been monitored by the CDC since they began the safety program in November.