Ace Health Desk – In short: Australia will not impose border restrictions or quarantine travellers from Ebola-affected countries: Published: Mon 1 Jun 2026 at 3:51pm: By national health reporter Stephanie Dalzell and the Specialist Reporting Team’s Paige Cockburn

There are three new suspected cases in Italy and Brazil:

What’s next?

Federal health minister Mark Butler said Australia was monitoring the outbreak closely.

The federal government will not impose border restrictions on travellers from Ebola-stricken countries despite new suspected cases in Italy and Brazil, as the worsening outbreak prompts other countries to take action to try to minimise the spread of the disease.

Health Minister Mark Butler said while suspected case numbers and deaths were “climbing very fast”, at this stage Australia had no plans to impose travel restrictions or quarantine requirements on affected countries.

“I’m taking very regular advice about this, this is a deeply concerning outbreak,” Mr Butler said.

As authorities around the world mobilise to stem the spread of the disease, there are many complicating factors at play — there is no approved vaccine or treatment for this strain of Ebola virus, and it originated in a country where active conflict hampers infection control.

What is Ebola?

Ebola is a group of severe infectious diseases that can cause an excessive inflammatory response and tissue damage.

On average, about half of people with Ebola disease die.

Ebola is caused by a species of orthoebolaviruses that were first identified in 1976, with three species causing large outbreaks. 

Ebola is a zoonotic disease, meaning it spreads between animals and humans.

In this case scientists believe fruit bats are involved in the spread, but it can also infect primates. 

Human contact can also occur through hunting and eating animal meat.

Initial symptoms can include fever and a headache, but as the disease progresses it can cause bleeding from body parts such as the nose and eyes.

While there are vaccines and treatments for the Zaire ebolavirus, crucially there are none for Sudan virus or Bundibugyo virus.

University of Queensland infectious diseases physician and clinical microbiologist Paul Griffin said while some products were in development, there were additional challenges with this latest outbreak.

“Ebola vaccines are an incredibly difficult thing to develop, not in terms of the technology required, but because of the area affected and the fact that there just isn’t a very large market or need in a global sense for a vaccine for this infection,” Professor Griffin said.

How does Ebola spread?

Ebola doesn’t spread through the air like COVID. Instead, people can contract Ebola through contact with the blood, organs or other bodily fluids of an infected animal.

The virus can then spread from person to person if broken skin or the mucous membranes in their nose, mouth or eyes come into contact with blood or bodily fluids — such as urine, sweat and vomit — from an infected person, even after they have died.

Health care workers have frequently been infected when treating patients with Ebola disease, while burial ceremonies that involve direct touching of the victim’s body is another driver of transmission.

Professor Griffin said while Ebola was deadly, it did not spread as fast as viruses such as COVID.

“When a disease is more severe so that people who are infected are obviously unwell and not able to move around, it therefore makes it harder for something to spread around,” he said.

What’s happening in Africa?

So far, much of the focus of the outbreak has been on Africa.

Last month, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a public health emergency of international concern in the DRC and Uganda, but said the outbreak did not meet the criteria for a pandemic emergency.

WHO reported more than 900 suspected cases and more than 220 likely Ebola-related deaths in the DRC, where persistent violence has hampered an effective public health response. There have also been a handful of cases in Uganda.

Despite this, the DRC has just celebrated the recovery of four Ebola patients who are the first to be discharged in the current outbreak.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the survivors proved that the outbreak could be stopped, stressing that early detection was crucial.

What about Brazil and Italy?

Health authorities in Brazil have identified two suspected Ebola infections in two of the country’s biggest cities — Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

In Sao Paulo, a man from the DRC presented with a fever and in Rio the suspected Ebola patient had recently travelled to Uganda.

Brazil’s Health Ministry said the patient in Sao Paulo had been intubated and his condition was serious.

In Italy, protocols for a suspected case of Ebola were triggered in Sardinia’s capital Cagliari, as a symptomatic patient was admitted to hospital after returning from Congo, local newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore reported on Sunday.

If confirmed, these cases would be the first known infections outside Africa since the outbreak began.

“If we see confirmed cases outside of the region, that will change the assessment of risk on a global scale and certainly mean that it’s something that we need to consider escalating strategies here in Australia as well, if those cases are confirmed,” Professor Griffin said.

“The risk will remain low for us but if we do see cases in other countries, that will obviously have to be assessed carefully.”

Which countries are implementing travel restrictions?

Several countries have moved to implement travel restrictions or border controls, to try to stop the virus spreading.

The United States has enhanced public health screening and traveller monitoring, including entry restrictions on non-US passport holders if they have been in Uganda, DRC or South Sudan in the previous 21 days.

In Canada, residents from the DRC, Uganda and South Sudan are banned from entering the country for 90 days, while citizens, permanent residents or foreign nationals who have been in affected areas and do not have symptoms have to quarantine for 21 days.

Other countries such as India and Mexico have also announced enhanced screening measures and surveillance at airports.

The WHO does not recommend any travel restrictions or active screening at non-affected countries that do not share borders with affected countries.

What are Australian authorities doing?

Australian authorities have not announced any travel restrictions or quarantine measures yet, but Mr Butler said the government was poised for action if advice changed.

“In Australia, we’re monitoring this very closely, we’re taking advice from the Centre for Disease Control,” he said.

“We have long-standing biosecurity protocols around listed diseases, particularly Ebola.”

Professor Griffin said given the global risk was low, Australia’s approach made sense.

“We’ve got an excellent health and public health system with protocols in place to recognise even suspected cases early, isolate and test them,” he said.

“But of course, if we don’t do more to control it at the source, that risk may well change into the future and so it highlights why we need to act to make sure that appropriate resources are invested.”

At Sterling Publishing & Media Service Agency, we prioritise transparency and accountability in all our operations. We wish to clarify that we are not responsible for any external content, hyperlinks, or costs associated with our services. Nevertheless, we remain committed to delivering outstanding services and greatly value your continued support. Thank you for your trust in us.