Travelers arriving from Ebola-stricken countries in West Africa will start to have their temperatures taken upon arrival at five U.S. airports, officials said Wednesday.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest confirmed that the five airports would be stepping up their procedures after he was asked at Wednesday's briefing about the fever screening.
"What we are essentially doing is adding another layer of security," Earnest said.
Earnest did not go into details about what the additional screenings would entail, but another official told the Associated Press that the new steps would include taking temperatures and would begin Saturday at New York's JFK International. Earnest said the other airports are Newark, Washington Dulles, Chicago O'Hare and Atlanta.
Earnest said the five airports cover the destinations of 94 percent of the people who travel to the U.S. from the three heavily hit countries in West Africa -- Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. He estimated that about 150 people would be checked a day under the new procedures.
