Emergency Request Memo - EVD Screening Questionnaire

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES
Public Health Service
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC)
Atlanta GA 30341-3724

October 6, 2022
Dominic Mancini
Deputy Director
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs
Office of Management and Budget
Washington, DC
Subject: Request for Emergency Review and Clearance
Dear Mr. Mancini:
Pursuant to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) procedures established at 5 CFR Part 1320,
Controlling Paperwork Burdens on the Public, I request that the revised information collection project,
2022 Ebola Airport Entry Questionnaires be processed in accordance with section 1320.13, Emergency
Processing.
I have determined that this information must be collected prior to the expiration of time period
established under Part 1320, and that this information is essential to the CDC’s ability to assess risk of
symptoms or exposure to Ebola virus disease (EVD) in travelers coming to the United States from areas
affected by an outbreak of EVD originating in Uganda.
EVD is a severe illness in humans with extremely high case fatality rates. The scale of this EVD outbreak
may continue to worsen. The best strategy to control the spread of the virus to the United States is to stop
it at the source with core public health interventions, including case finding, contact tracing, and exit
screening of travelers. As part of a layered intervention strategy, the U.S. government is supplementing
activities in support of the Government of Uganda with an enhanced public health entry risk assessment
for travelers arriving from countries affected by the EVD outbreak that originated in Uganda.
To further protect U.S. communities from an imported case of EVD, the United States must be prepared
to respond domestically by providing state and local health departments and healthcare facilities with the
necessary assessments and questionnaires that can assist in identifying symptoms of or high-risk
exposures to EVD in travelers arriving from areas affected by the outbreak. With assistance from the
Department of Homeland Security, CDC will conduct these emergency assessments at designated U.S.
airports that are receiving travelers from the outbreak areas, with assistance from the Department of
Homeland Security. This system of risk assessment and triage will facilitate transmission of information
to assist state and local health departments to complete a 21-day follow-up period and prevent
introduction and spread of EVD into the United States.
CDC cannot reasonably comply with the normal clearance procedures due to the public harm that will
result if routine processing of this request is required. CDC requests authorization to use information
collection instruments at select U.S. ports of entry for 180 days to mitigate the risk of the importation and
spread of EVD in the United States. If an emergency approval is not granted, then the spread of Ebola to
the United States is more likely.
Please provide an approval/disapproval determination of this request to collect information under an

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES
Public Health Service
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC)
Atlanta GA 30341-3724

emergency clearance by 12 pm ET, October 7, 2022.

Respectfully,
Digitally signed by Christopher
Christopher R.
R. Braden -S
Date: 2022.10.06 15:13:04 -04'00'
Braden -S
________________________________________
Christopher Braden, M.D.
Acting Director, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic
Infectious Diseases (NCEZID), Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC)