Former CDC director Tom Frieden urges massive, immediate response to DRC Ebola outbreak (statnews.com)

• Current DRC outbreak spread from 3 to 25 health zones in three weeks; suspected cases at response start ~10 times the ~45 of 2014.
• Fewer than half of contacts traced, labs backlogged, insufficient Ebola treatment centers and PPE.
• No vaccine or proven treatment for this strain; supportive care and contact tracing are key.
• U.S. CDC lost ~3,000 experts, USAID dismantled, WHO withdrawal hinders response capacity.
• Frieden urges immediate surge support: lab, genomic sequencing, epidemiological analysis, community funding.

"In an op-ed, former CDC Director Tom Frieden compares the current DRC Ebola outbreak to the 2014 West Africa epidemic. He notes that the outbreak began with 40-50 suspected cases but had spread to 10 times that by the time response started, and from 3 to 25 health zones in three weeks. Contact tracing is low, labs are backlogged, and treatment centers are scarce. Frieden calls for massive surge support, emphasizing that without it, control could take years. He criticizes current U.S. capacity due to staffing cuts and agency dismantling."