US adds $38 million as CDC warns Ebola could top 20,000 cases
Why it matters: CDC models show the outbreak in Congo could rival the 2014-16 West Africa crisis within three months without faster isolation.
The United States committed another $38 million for the Ebola response on Friday after CDC analyses warned the outbreak centered in the Democratic Republic of Congo could become one of the largest ever recorded. The new funding brings direct U.S. commitments to more than $200 million, the State Department said, as Congo and Uganda try to contain the Bundibugyo strain. CDC modeling found that if only 20% of cases are isolated within two days of symptoms, more than 20,000 cases could occur in the next three months in two of three scenarios. Congo has reported 452 confirmed cases and 82 deaths, including 71 new cases in 24 hours, while the World Health Organization declared an international emergency on May 17.