Former CDC director on Ebola outbreak: ‘I suspect this is going to become a very significant pandemic’
Former CDC director on Ebola outbreak: ‘I suspect this is going to become a very significant pandemic’
Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield said Wednesday he suspects the spreading Ebola outbreak in Africa will spread across three new countries and become a “very significant pandemic.”
“I suspect this is going to become a very significant pandemic, probably going to leak into Tanzania, leak into southern Sudan, maybe leak into Rwanda,” Redfield said during an appearance on NewsNation’s “Elizabeth Vargas Reports.”
“So, it’s going to be very disruptive,” he added.
A majority of the Ebola cases are in Congo and Uganda.
Local health officials in the two nations reported 536 suspected cases, 105 probable cases, 34 confirmed cases and around 134 suspected deaths from the outbreak, according to the CDC.
“This is an outbreak right now that is really a significant outbreak that’s of significant public health international concern, partially because what you said, it wasn’t recognized very quickly. I’m not sure why,” Redfield told anchor Elizabeth Vargas.
“Normally when we have these Ebola outbreaks, and I had three of them when I was CDC director, all of which were in the DRC, normally we recognize them when we have five, 10 cases, you know, at most,” he continued. “This one really wasn’t picked up until there was over 100 cases.”
The former CDC director added, “As you said, now there’s over 500 cases. There’s close to 150 deaths already, and it’s moving very rapidly.”
The May outbreak marks the 17th outbreak of Ebola in the region within the past 50 years, and officials said the most recent outbreak ended last December, the CDC noted.
One American worker reportedly came in contact with the virus while working in Congo and was transported to Germany for treatment.
On Thursday, the State Department issued a travel advisory requiring that all U.S.-bound American citizens and lawful permanent residents who have been in Congo, Uganda or South Sudan within 21 days of arrival in the U.S. go through “enhanced public health screening” carried out by the CDC and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Travelers who have been to African countries with reports of Ebola outbreaks within the last three weeks must complete the enhanced screening at Washington Dulles International Airport.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Follow WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event live results and match-by-match updates as WWE heads to Indiana with a five-match showcase, including two Intercontinental Championship tilts.
Follow Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven live results and round-by-round updates for Saturday’s heavyweight title fight at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt.
The Western Conference war of attrition, through the first three games, has become a dissertation in depth.
Need extra hints for today’s Strands puzzle? Here are clues and spoilers for puzzle #811.
Yahoo Tech
A few names are starting to leak ahead of the official World Cup roster drop on Tuesday.
FTR helped revive tag-team wrestling by refusing to treat it like a stepping stone. Now, as another legacy-defining AEW title defense looms, they’re calling their shots atop the game’s all-time pantheon.
From breezy button-downs to sultry sarongs, we got the scoop from swimwear designers and stylists.
WWE SmackDown headed to Lexington, Kentucky, for its final show before Saturday Night’s Main Event.
Indiana was given an official warning from the WNBA for not listing Clark on the injury report prior to her missing Wednesday’s game with back soreness.
Tong continues a youth movement for the Mets as they attempt to turn around their season, joining Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing and Nick Morabito.
Powered by WPeMatico