US races to tighten policy on Ebola following second case in Texas

The mistakes in Dallas's handling of the first Ebola case diagnosed in the United States have revealed an uncomfortable reality: state and city plans for handling the deadly virus are based on generic recommendations for everything from measles to floods, hurricanes and dirty bombs.

Even before Sunday's news that a health worker who treated the Dallas case had herself contracted the disease, officials acknowledged they need to do more.

Checks with health departments in six states and cities that have large West African communities - Philadelphia, Boston, New York City, Minnesota, New Jersey, Maryland and Rhode Island - show that they are desperately scrambling to adapt those generic plans to Ebola.

If they are not able to stay one step ahead of any cases, then lapses that characterised Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan's treatment in Dallas could recur.

Errors also led to the infection of a Texas health worker who treated Duncan. The infected worker, identified as a woman but not named by authorities, is believed to be the first person to contract the disease in the United States.

In terms of preparedness around the US, there is a lot to do: hospital drills, 911 emergency operator guidelines, quarantine rules, even details such as checking that plastic body bags meet the minimum thickness - 150 micrometres - recommended by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.