Rep. Todd Rokita (R-IN) implied during an interview conducted Monday with Indianapolis radio station WIBC that children immigrating from Central America may be infected with the Ebola virus.
According to the Northwest Indiana Times, Rokita said that the issue of infection had come up during a conversation with fellow Rep. Larry Bucshon (R-IN), who happens to also be a heart surgeon.
“He said, look, we need to know just from a public-health standpoint, with Ebola circulating and everything else — no, that’s my addition to it, not necessarily his — but he said we need to know the condition of these kids,” Rokita said, according to the Times.
Ebola has already killed more than 800 people this year in West Africa but there are no reported cases originating in the Western Hemisphere. According to the U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement’s website, all refugees released to family members and sponsors have first undergone a series of medical screenings ensuring that they are not infected with contagious illnesses.
h/t Zoe Schlanger
