The ongoing Ebola outbreak in Africa could escalate into a major regional pandemic, according to Dr. Robert Redfield, former director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Redfield's Warning
"I suspect this is going to become a very significant pandemic," Redfield told NewsNation. He predicted the virus would "probably leak into Tanzania, leak into South Sudan, maybe leak into Rwanda."
Redfield criticized the slow initial response, noting that the outbreak "wasn't recognized very quickly" and "really wasn't picked up until there were over 100 cases." He described the situation as "a significant outbreak that's of significant public health international concern."
Outbreak Details
The outbreak, believed to have originated in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), has likely killed more than 130 people. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a public health emergency of international concern over the weekend but stopped short of calling it a pandemic emergency.
Anais Legand, WHO technical officer for viral threats, stated that investigations are ongoing to determine the outbreak's start date. "Given the scale, we are thinking that it has started probably a couple of months ago," she said.
The first suspected Ebola death was reported on April 20. The rare Bundibugyo strain, for which no vaccine exists, is driving the outbreak. According to the WHO, this strain has an average fatality rate of about 40 percent.
Impact of U.S. Funding Cuts
Critics argue that Trump administration foreign aid and health cuts may have hampered disease monitoring. Heather Reoch Kerr, International Rescue Committee's Congo country director, told Politico that "funding cuts have left the region dangerously exposed." She added that "the sharp rise in reported cases over the last few days reflects the reality that surveillance systems are now catching up with transmission that has likely been occurring for some time."
March 2025 funding cuts forced the IRC to more than halve its health and preparedness work in Ituri Province, the outbreak's epicenter.
U.S. Response
U.S. officials say they are supporting the withdrawal of a small group of Americans affected by the outbreak. A handful of Americans in the DRC are thought to have been exposed to suspected cases. The CDC confirmed that "to date, no Ebola cases associated with this outbreak have been reported in the United States, and the risk to the general public remains low."
