By Roberta Rampton and Richard Valdmanis

WASHINGTON/DALLAS (Reuters) – President Barack Obama said on Monday that the government would develop expanded screening of airline passengers for Ebola, both in the West African countries hit by the disease and the United States.

The first patient diagnosed with the disease on U.S. soil, Thomas Eric Duncan, remained in critical condition in a Dallas hospital, as Obama was briefed by agencies involved in fighting the spread of the deadly virus.

The president said it was important to follow existing protocols strictly.

“But we’re also going to be working on protocols to do additional passenger screening, both at the source and here in the United States,” Obama said.

However, the White House said that a ban on travel from West African countries, which some U.S. officials have called for, would slow the fight against Ebola.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said officials did not want to impede transport systems used to send supplies and personnel to the hardest-hit countries in West Africa, so a travel ban was not being considered.

Authorities in the United States and the public are on alert following Duncan’s diagnosis just over a week ago, raising concerns that the worst epidemic of Ebola on record could spread from West Africa.

Health officials said none of the 10 people who were being monitored after having had direct contact with Duncan are so far showing signs of Ebola symptoms. Ebola, which can cause fever, vomiting and diarrhea, spreads through contact with bodily fluids such as blood or saliva.

People leaving Ebola-affected countries are asked to fill out a questionnaire on whether they have symptoms such as a high fever and whether or not they have had any contact with someone who was diagnosed with Ebola. In Liberia, at least, they also are scanned for fever.

Obama said on Monday that “the chances of an outbreak – of an epidemic here are extraordinarily low.” He also said some other countries were not doing enough to fight the disease at its source in West Africa.

“I’ll be honest with you: Although we have seen interest on the part of the international community, we have not seen other countries step up,” the president said. “We’ve had some small countries that are punching above their weight on this but we’ve got some large countries that aren’t doing enough.”

PASSENGER CHECKS

Several health experts and lawmakers have asked the administration to consider enhancing U.S. airport and customs screenings, including checking travelers using handheld fever scanners.

The death toll from the disease has been rising in three impoverished West African countries: Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. The current Ebola outbreak has killed at least 3,439 people since it began in March, out of nearly 7,500 confirmed, probable and suspected cases.

(Additional reporting by Steve Holland, Susan Heavey and Mohammad Zargham in Washington, Jon Herskovitz in Austin, Texas and Lisa Marie Garza in Dallas, Jeffrey Dastin and Sharon Begley in New York; Writing by Grant McCool; Editing by Peter Henderson and Jonathan Oatis)