U.S says no Ebola patients at Laikipia facility, announces Ksh.1.2B support for Kenya

The US-funded bio-isolation facility in Laikipia, Nanyuki County, is ready to receive patients, despite a court order barring the operation of any Ebola facility in Kenya by a foreign government until a case challenging the functionality of the facility is heard and determined.

The United States State Department has also announced a Ksh.1.2 billion donation in new direct support to Kenya’s efforts to detect Ebola and prevent its spread.

A statement released by the US State Department Press Office in Washington DC said the United States was aware of reports of a Kenyan citizen who died of Ebola in Nairobi after apparently travelling from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

“The Kenyan citizen with Ebola did not use the facility nor did we receive any requests for the facility to be used for this patient. There are not currently any patients in the facility,” the State Department Press Office said.

The department said the bio-isolation facility in Laikipia was part of the US government’s wider response to prevent the spread of the disease and reduce health risks in the region.

“The bio-isolation facility in Laikipia is part of the U.S. Government’s holistic response to prevent the spread of the disease and lessen health risks for the region as a whole,” the statement said.

The clarification comes after seven American disaster response workers who were reportedly admitted to the facility were discharged after completing a mandatory 21-day quarantine.

This is despite a High Court order barring the operation of any Ebola facility in Kenya by a foreign government until the case challenging the functionality of the US-funded bio-isolation facility in Laikipia is heard and determined.

The United States State Department said it was providing Ksh.1.2 billion in new direct support to Kenya’s efforts to detect Ebola and prevent its spread.

The department added that since the outbreak of the virus, the US had provided Ksh.115 billion in direct health and humanitarian assistance to combat the Ebola outbreak in the East and Central African region.

Meanwhile, the Kenyan government is preparing a Ksh.70 billion Ebola fund mitigation approach through the National Treasury.