Dallas: 48 Released from 21-Day Ebola Quarantine

A batch of people who treated Thomas Eric Duncan, the Ebola patient who died in a Dallas hospital, have been released from their 21-day quarantine.

Health officials say the group of 48 people are no longer a risk.

"We are so happy this is coming to an end, and we are so grateful that none of us has shown any sign of illness," Louise Troh, Duncan's fiancée, said in a statement Sunday.

Also, passengers aboard a cruise ship carrying the Dallas lab supervisor who handled samples from Duncan are breathing a sigh of relief after the woman tested negative for Ebola.
    
Although she showed no symptoms, she voluntarily quarantined herself in her cabin for days as fear spread quickly.
  
Meanwhile, the two Texas nurses who contracted Ebola from Duncan -- Nina Pham and Amber Vinson -- remain hospitalized.

Barclay Berdan, the CEO of Texas Health Resources, issued a public apology for the hospital's handling of Duncan's case.

"I know that as an institution, we made mistakes in handling this very difficult challenge," Berdan wrote in a letter published in the Dallas Morning News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

"When we initially treated Mr. Duncan, we examined him thoroughly and performed numerous tests, but the fact that Mr. Duncan had traveled to Africa was not communicated effectively among the care team, though it was in his medical chart," he acknowledged.

"On that visit to the Emergency Department, we did not correctly diagnose his symptoms as those of Ebola. For this, we are deeply sorry," he said.
    
Meanwhile, federal health officials are revising Ebola safety protocols for hospitals.

"One of the things is going to be complete covering, with no skin showing whatsoever," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told ABC's "This Week."

The Pentagon is now assembling a 30-member medical support team to help the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fight Ebola if needed.