Africa CDC Triples Ebola Funding Estimate to $1.4 Billion as Trump Administration Seeks Congressional Approval

As the rare Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak surpasses 1,000 cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Africa CDC has tripled its funding estimate to $1.4 billion. Simultaneously, the Trump administration is seeking $1.4 billion from Congress to fund global health security and a controversial quarantine facility in Kenya for exposed Americans. The response faces severe hurdles, including violent attacks on treatment centers in Congo, local protests in Kenya, and the lack of an approved vaccine.

Ebola case numbers

• ▪The World Health Organization reported 20 confirmed Ebola cases and two confirmed deaths in Uganda
• ▪The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has infected more than 1,000 people and killed 267, generating the largest number of confirmed cases within the first month of any episode of the disease

Congressional funding request

• ▪The $1.4 billion U.S. funding request includes $800 million for humanitarian crisis responses, $500 million for global health security, and $90 million for diplomatic efforts
• ▪The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention tripled its estimate of funding needed to tackle the Ebola outbreak to $1.4 billion, up from an earlier estimate of $518 million
• ▪The Trump administration is seeking more than $1.4 billion in new funds from Congress to address the widening Ebola virus outbreak

Kenya quarantine facility controversy

• ▪Kenya's High Court extended an order pausing construction of the U.S.-backed Ebola quarantine and treatment facility at Laikipia Air Base following local protests and legal challenges
• ▪The Trump administration's proposed $1.4 billion funding request includes $800 million to fund a quarantine and treatment center in Kenya for Americans exposed to the Ebola virus

Vaccine development efforts

• ▪The current Ebola outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment
• ▪The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations is distributing funds to Moderna, the University of Oxford, and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative to develop new Ebola vaccines

Armed conflict barriers

• ▪World Health Organization officials flagged that the Ebola response is complicated by decades of ethnic conflict, local distrust, and security risks to health workers
• ▪Armed groups and local residents in the Democratic Republic of Congo have attacked Ebola treatment facilities, including burning down a treatment tent in Mongbwalu and opening fire at a hospital

Border closures

• ▪France's health ministry established a dedicated monitoring system for aid workers returning from the Democratic Republic of Congo after a French doctor tested positive for Ebola
• ▪Officials in Uganda ordered the closure of its border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo to prevent the spread of Ebola, despite World Health Organization guidance advising against such measures