Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday announced a program to encourage health-care professionals to travel to West Africa to treat Ebola patients by offering them job and health-care protections upon their return.

The state and city program is modeled after rights and benefits offered to military reservists returning from war, according to a statement from Cuomo.

The state and city will ensure that workers who travel to Ebola-afflicted areas will not lose their jobs or benefits while abroad, according to the plan. The state also will reimburse returning workers who are quarantined and their employers.

“We believe that public health in West Africa and the public health in New York are interconnected and both must be addressed,” Cuomo said in the statement. “The depth of the challenge we face in containing Ebola requires us to meet this test in a comprehensive manner on multiple fronts, and part of that is encouraging and incentivizing medical personnel to go to West Africa.”

Cuomo and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie last week announced a mandatory 21-day quarantine for anyone who has had close contact with Ebola patients in Sierra Leone, Liberia or Guinea, the three West African countries ravaged by the disease.

Health-care groups and President Obama have criticized the policy for being too restrictive.