Public Health Cuts Risk Turning Ebola Outbreak into Regional Crisis

A previously undetected Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak is spreading in the DRC with hundreds of suspected cases and dozens of deaths, including spillover to Uganda and potential risk to South Sudan. The WHO has declared a public health emergency of international concern as experts warn that sweeping U.S. public health cuts—dissolving USAID, layoffs at health agencies, and withdrawing from WHO—have weakened surveillance, labs, and response capacity, raising the chance of wider spread. Critics say travel bans are ineffective and that the U.S. is no longer at the table, underscoring calls for renewed funding to stop the outbreak.