Gov. Brown Meets with Nurses Over Ebola Preparedness

Gov. Jerry Brown met with top public health officials and nursing union leaders Tuesday to discuss efforts to prepare for Ebola. The meetings came on the heels of new guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Monday night.

There are no known cases of Ebola in California. But after two nurses in Texas became infected after treating an Ebola patient there, the CDC is now recommending that hospitals provide better protective equipment for health workers, and hands-on training for how to put it on and take it off.

But the California Nurses Association (CNA) says the guidelines don't go far enough.

Oakland nurse Katy Roemer says the CNA wants the governor to issue a mandate that forces hospitals to follow through with the training, and the CNA wants hospitals to provide protective suits that go beyond CDC guidelines.

"We want full Hazmat suits," Roemer said in reference to hazardous materials suits, "so that when we are in a room risking our lives taking care of these patients, that we are protected."

The governor's office did not respond to this request, but issued a statement saying state officials are taking steps to ensure hospitals are prepared for Ebola.

The Sacramento Bee released a video of a press conference where RoseAnn DeMoro, executive director of the National Nurses United/CNA, stated that "none of the hospitals in California are prepared for Ebola."

The California Hospital Association rebutted the nurses and issued a statement of its own, saying that California hospitals are prepared for Ebola.

Meanwhile, across the country, federal authorities are now routing all passengers traveling to the U.S. from West African countries affected by the Ebola virus through one of five airports.

None of those airports are in California. But the state’s busiest -- Los Angeles International Airport -- is taking precautions anyway.

L.A. County’s public health chief, Dr. Jeffrey Gunzenhauser, says his office will be working closely with the handful of U.S. airports now screening all passengers who arrive from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

He says if any of those passengers are then headed to LAX, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health will know about it. “If the last point of the travel is actually our city,” says Gunzenhauser, “this will really provide us a great opportunity to monitor the individuals who just traveled from West Africa to Los Angeles County.”

In Santa Clara County, health officials provided their third update to the Board of Supervisors. The officials say they’ve implemented Ebola screening at the emergency department of Valley Medical Center in San Jose and other health care settings.

Peter Jon Shuler and Steven Cuevas contributed to this report.