While addressing the Ebola pandemic, Dr. Oz said on Tuesday that Ebola could spread to Oklahoma City, likely due to its proximity to Dallas, T.X., where the first case of Ebola in America was reported, according to KOCO Oklahoma City.
"The big risk with Ebola, and by the way this won't be the last time Ebola comes to this country, so even if it's Dallas now it might be Oklahoma City next week. There are going to be more people trying to leave West Africa who have the virus," he told KOCO.
Thomas Eric Duncan, the man who came down with symptoms while visiting family in Dallas, is now being treated with experimental drugs in hopes of clearing his infection.
Dallas authorities are quarantining anyone who had contact with Duncan as concerns flare over if the virus can spread as rapidly in the U.S. as it did in West Africa. But authorities insist that Ebola is not an airborne virus.
Dr. Oz, best know for his day - time talk show, said overcrowded hospitals and more lenient sanitation standards are partially to blame for the epidemic in Africa.
"In West Africa they bury people who have passed on themselves, and that's probably how a lot of the virus got spread," Dr. Oz said.
He stressed that the most effective way to preventing a severe outbreak in U.S. is to eradicate it in West Africa. The doctor estimated that infected individuals will continue to come to the U.S. seeking better treatment.
Getting care delivered to where it's needed in West Africa should be the first step. In the U.S, Dr. Oz said Americans aren't really considering if those around could be infected and if people should be checking their temperatures regularly.
In an interview with Fox 8 in Cleveland, Dr. Oz's hometown, he said health care facilities around the country, including Cleveland, are ready to manage a possible outbreak and know how to properly diagnose people when they arrive at hospitals.
