Let's say we did ban travel from West Africa. Couldn't somebody just fly to Europe and fly to America from there? What about flying from Africa to Canada and crossing the border on car?
FYI, I've never flown so I'm not really familiar with all the procedures.
I don't think there currently are any direct flights from the U.S. to the affected countries, unless they are on some obscure foreign airline. Most would travel through Europe.
But non-U.S. Citizens or permanent residents need a visa to travel from places like Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. Denying visas until the Ebola epidemic is contained wouldn't take much effort. Denying entry to nationals from those countries who already have a visa at the border and sending them back from whence they came wouldn't take much effort. Going one step forward by denying entry to those who declare that they have traveled to those countries on their trip would take a bit more effort, but not much. It requires looking at the entry form everyone needs to fill out when entering the country by air and asking the proper questions at the land borders. And it's not impossible for a border agent to catch those who lie on their forms or questions by looking at passport stamps to see if there are any recent entry or exit visas from the affected countries and deny entry or require quarantine.
So, no, it wouldn't be difficult to enforce a partial (West African citizens only) or full travel ban from the affected West African countries.
