The United States announced on Friday that it will contribute an additional $38 million to support Ebola response efforts, as the CDC cautioned that the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo could reach or exceed the scale of the 2014–2016 West Africa epidemic if robust public health measures are not implemented.
According to a statement from the State Department, the new funding increases total U.S. direct assistance for Ebola response initiatives to more than $200 million.
The department did not specify how the additional funding would be allocated but stated that it is collaborating closely with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, to support a swift and coordinated response to the Ebola outbreak.
On Friday, the CDC released three official scientific reports on the outbreak. According to Dr. Satish Pillai, who leads the agency’s Ebola response efforts, the reports were issued in part to help mobilize resources and strengthen international support for containing the disease.
These publications mark the first official scientific reports released since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on May 17. The outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
The outbreak in the DRC has resulted in 452 confirmed cases of Ebola and 82 deaths, according to the DRC health ministry, which said on Friday that 71 new cases were confirmed in a 24-hour period and warned of rapid community transmission.
OUTBREAK COULD RIVAL 2014 WEST AFRICA CRISIS
According to CDC modeling projections, the Bundibugyo strain Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo could reach a scale comparable to or even exceed the devastating 2014–2016 West Africa Ebola epidemic if strong public health measures are not rapidly implemented and sustained.
Jason Asher, director of the CDC’s Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics, warned that in scenarios where infected patients are not effectively isolated, the Ebola outbreak could grow into one of the largest ever recorded.
To support response efforts, the CDC currently has around 30 personnel based in its Democratic Republic of Congo office and approximately 100 staff members in Uganda. The agency has also deployed additional experts to the region in recent weeks to help contain the outbreak.
