CDC elevates Ebola response to highest level

News CDC elevates Ebola response to highest level Comments: by Nathaniel Weixel - 06/26/26 3:16 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Nathaniel Weixel - 06/26/26 3:16 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is raising its Ebola response to the highest level, agency officials said Friday, as the outbreak continues to spread uncontrolled across Congo and Uganda.

“Elevating the response level reflects the urgency, scale, and complexity of the outbreak, and allows CDC to bring additional resources to support the coordination and operational needs of our response,” Satish Pillai, the CDC’s Ebola response incidence manager, told reporters.

More than 1,100 people across Congo and Uganda have tested positive since May, and officials said they expect that number to continue to grow. At least 250 people have died, though the number is likely much higher since the virus appears to have been spreading undetected for months.

“We are very concerned about the trajectory of cases, which are rising rapidly, as well as the continued geographic spread,” Pillai said, while emphasizing there is no risk to the U.S.

Pillai said escalating the agency’s response to Level 1 is an internal signal that the Ebola response is going to be a top agency priority. While staffing levels will depend on the outbreak, the escalation shows “how seriously our acting director and our agency leadership take this response.”

The agency has about 100 staff members deployed both domestically and internationally for the Ebola response, which includes field offices in both countries with 24 members permanently in Congo and nearly 100 in Uganda, Pillai said.

The announcement comes days after the Trump administration asked Congress for an additional $1.4 billion to fund the Ebola response, as well as after the CDC issued an order extending its travel restrictions on non-U.S. citizens — including lawful permanent residents — who were recently in Congo, South Sudan or Uganda.

The travel restrictions will now be in place until July 21.

Infectious disease experts and global health authorities like the World Health Organization (WHO) say travel restrictions don’t usually help. While they may delay the introduction of a pathogen, they rarely prevent it entirely and also breed stigma on the people who are restricted.

Veterans of past Ebola outbreaks and other infectious disease experts said the Trump administration appears to be more focused on keeping Ebola out of the U.S. than helping fight the outbreak abroad.

Meanwhile, Democrats have been pressing the administration for more details about how it will combat the outbreak. They have also been urging officials to let the CDC and other relevant agencies collaborate with the WHO on the Ebola response.

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