Skip Navigation LinksEbolaLHDs

Top Menu

Ebola Virus Disease 

Information for Local Health Departments

Last updated November 1, 2022

Important Updates

  • On September 20, 2022, Uganda health authorities declared an outbreak of EVD following laboratory confirmation of a patient from the Mubende district in Central Uganda. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), and other partners are working closely with the Uganda Ministry of Health (MOH) to respond to this outbreak.

  • For more information, including the Ebola-affected Uganda districts, please see the CDC Uganda Ebola Outbreak, September 2022 webpage.

  • Beginning the week of October 10, 2022, the CDC and Department of Homeland Security began the funneling of air passengers traveling to the U.S. who had been to Uganda. These passengers will fly into Atlanta (ATL), Chicago (ORD), Newark (EWR), New York (JFK) and Washington DC (IAD). Any California resident or visitor identified by CDC as having traveled to Uganda will be referred to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) for follow up. CDPH will forward traveler information to the respective LHDs to conduct risk assessments, educate, and monitor returning travelers.

  • The Ebola outbreak in Uganda continues to be an evolving situation. As new evidence and understanding emerges, CDPH will collaborate with other State officials to assess and provide additional updates as they become available.


Ebola virus disease (EVD) is a rare but often fatal infectious disease in humans and nonhuman primates. Ebola was first discovered in 1976 in what is now called the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Since then, the virus has on occasion, emerged from its natural reservoir (which has not been confirmed, but is believed to be fruit bats) and spread among people in certain parts of Africa.

The genus Ebolavirus is composed of six species, four of which are known to cause disease in humans (Zaire, Sudan, Tai Forest, Bundibugyo).

  • Zaire ebolavirus was associated with several large outbreaks in Central Africa and Western Africa, including the 2014ā€“2016 West African EVD epidemic, during which there were more than 28,000 cases and 11,000 deaths.

  • Sudan ebolavirus has caused several outbreaks in Sudan and Uganda, including the EVD outbreak in Uganda confirmed in September 2022.

People can get EVD through direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes) with:

  • an infected animal (fruit bat or nonhuman primate)

  • a person who is sick with or has died from EVD

  • blood or body fluids (urine, saliva, sweat, vomit, feces, breast milk, and semen) from a person who is sick with or has died from EVD

  • objects (such as clothes, bedding, needles, and medical equipment) contaminated with the blood or body fluids from a person who is sick with or has died from EVD


People with EVD can only spread Ebola to other people while they are experiencing symptoms or after they have died.

Contact CDPH

If the LHD is notified of a suspected Ebola virus disease case, contact CDPH immediately:

The prevention and control of EVD in California requires a coordinated effort between healthcare providers and local health departments (LHDs), healthcare facilities, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

LHDs should review and update their plans for responding to and managing a patient with EVD or other highly infectious diseases. As these plans are developed, LHDs should coordinate with local healthcare providers and facilities, the Local Emergency Medical Services Agency (LEMSA), and local EMS transport agencies, among others.

Reporting to CDPH

Ebola virus disease is considered to be a medical and public health emergency and must be immediately reported to CDPH.

If a returned traveler or any person with high-risk exposure(s) develops symptoms suggestive of EVD, CDPH should be notified immediately.

High-risk exposures to Ebola include:

      • Percutaneous (i.e., piercing the skin), mucous membrane (e.g., eye, nose, or mouth), or skin contact with blood or body fluids of an ill or dead person with known or suspected EVD.

      • Direct physical contact with (e.g. shaking hands or touching) a person who has/had known or suspected EVD.

      • Providing health care or home care to a patient with known or suspected EVD without use of recommended personal protective equipment (PPE).

      • Experiencing a breach in infection control precautions that results in the potential for percutaneous, mucous membrane, or skin contact with the blood or body fluids of a patient or a dead body with EVD.

      • Living in the same household as a person with symptomatic known or suspected EVD.

      • Contact with semen from a man who has recently recovered from EVD (e.g., through oral, vaginal, or anal sex).

Patients with high-risk exposure(s) will be managed in coordination with CDPH and CDC. LHDs can use the "Ebola Contact Tracking" condition in CalREDIE for monitoring of individuals who have returned from Ebola-affected areas. This condition includes three User Defined Forms:

  1. Contact Summary

  2. Travel History

  3. Symptom Diary that can be used for 21-day monitoring

The "Ebola Virus Disease" condition in CalREDIE can be used for individuals with suspected EVD.



Individuals may be classified as persons under investigation (PUI) if they have signs and symptoms of EVD and an epidemiological risk factor (e.g., high-risk exposure(s), travel to an Ebola outbreak area, etc.).

Reporting
Health Alerts
Additional Resources & Guidance
Page Last Updated :