CDC’s “Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report”: Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak — Democratic Republic of the Congo, August 2018-November 2019
Aaron Aruna of the DRC Ministry of Health and colleagues summarize the current status of the Ebola outbreak, including epidemiology reports and control efforts. The authors note, “Compared with earlier outbreaks, this outbreak is occurring in a context of armed conflict, and innovative approaches beyond the conventional Ebola response are needed. These approaches include the building of trust with communities amid insecurity, opportunistically timed intensive interventions during periods of relative stability, and intensive training of local residents to manage response activities, with periodic supervision by national and international personnel as a public health priority” (12/20).

HHS: HHS Secretary Azar Statement on FDA Approval of Ebola Vaccine
Following the FDA’s first-ever approval of an Ebola vaccine, Secretary Azar said, “The first-ever FDA approval of a vaccine for the prevention of Ebola is a triumph of American global health leadership. … When I led the U.S. delegation to Central Africa in September to learn more about the situation on the ground, we underscored that ending the Ebola outbreak is one of the top global health priorities for the Trump administration. We will continue strongly supporting the DRC government, other governments in the region, and the World Health Organization in their work until the Ebola outbreak is brought to an end, and we will continue working with governments around the world to prepare for and prevent such infectious disease outbreaks in the future” (12/19).