The following editorials and opinion pieces discuss various aspects of the ongoing Ebola outbreak.

New York Times: Cuba’s Impressive Role on Ebola
Editorial Board

“Cuba is an impoverished island that remains largely cut off from the world … Yet, having pledged to deploy hundreds of medical professionals to the front lines of the pandemic, Cuba stands to play the most robust role among the nations seeking to contain the virus. Cuba’s contribution is doubtlessly meant at least in part to bolster its beleaguered international standing. Nonetheless, it should be lauded and emulated. … The work of these Cuban medics benefits the entire global effort and should be recognized for that. But Obama administration officials have callously declined to say what, if any, support they would give them…” (10/19).

Washington Post: As Ebola rages in Africa, the international response continues to lag
Editorial Board

“…Now, the alarms about cases in the United States have reached a crescendo, in waves of panic fueled by hyperactive news and social media. But the actual response on the front lines of the epidemic — in Africa — is lagging … If there is something to panic about, it is the failure to get ahead of the outbreak in Africa. … The experts are clear: What is required to prevent Ebola from spreading to the United States is quicker and more comprehensive action in Africa. The world needs to meet Ebola on virus time” (10/18).

Granma: Duty calls
Fidel Castro Ruz, former president of Cuba

“Our country did not hesitate one minute in responding to the request made by international bodies for support to the struggle against the brutal [Ebola] epidemic which has erupted in West Africa. … The medical professionals who travel to any location whatsoever to save lives, even at the risk of losing their own, provide the greatest example of solidarity a human being can offer, above all when no material interest whatsoever exists as a motivation. … We will happily cooperate with U.S. personnel in this task, not in search of peace between these two states which have been adversaries for so many years, but rather, in any event, for World Peace, an objective which can and should be attempted…” (10/17).

Washington Post: The long-term cure for Ebola: An investment in health systems
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, president of Liberia

“…What is so tragic is that, until this outbreak, Liberia had made significant progress in building up its public health systems. … [A]ny African nation with a fragile health system is potentially vulnerable to this terrible disease. After all, infectious disease knows no borders. The United Nations has said it is going to take $1 billion to stop this outbreak. Of course, that’s our immediate priority. But at the same time, countries like Liberia need long-term investment to build up our health systems to prevent outbreaks of this scale from ever happening again” (10/19).

The Hill: Ron Klain as Ebola czar — Right person for the right job at the right time
Lanny Davis, columnist

Wall Street Journal: Ebola Isn’t a Messaging Problem
Scott Gottlieb, an American Enterprise Institute resident fellow, and Tevi Troy, president of the American Health Policy Institute

Devex: Why the E.U.’s Ebola response doesn’t add up
Volker Hauck, head of the conflict, security, and resilience program at the European Centre for Development Policy Management, and Sophie Desmidt, a research assistant at ECDPM

New Republic: What a Past Epidemic Teaches Us About Ebola
Howard Markel, the George E. Wantz Distinguished Professor of the History of Medicine at the University of Michigan and editor of the Milbank Quarterly

Bloomberg View: Ebola’s Greatest Threat: A Third-World Pandemic
Megan McArdle, a Bloomberg View columnist

The Hill: Public health: The (silent) cure for Ebola
Mary Pittman, president and CEO of the Public Health Institute

Foreign Policy: The Poor and the Sick
Fran Quigley, a clinical professor of law at the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law

The Hill: Ebola is apolitical
Terry Schofield, independent analyst

Project Syndicate: The End of Ebola
Abdul Tejan-Cole, executive director of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa