Working together, West African scientists and health care workers, and their colleagues from the United States and other countries, have reduced the number of Ebola cases. These professionals run laboratories and treat sick patients while U.S. troops help by building Ebola treatment units.
But more work is needed to get the number down to zero. Ebola has proven a difficult foe in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, where the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified nearly 1,000 new cases in late January.
“The world needs to … build a more effective global effort to prevent the spread of future pandemics, invest in smart development and eradicate extreme poverty,” said President Obama in his 2015 State of the Union address.
What work remains?
- Absorb the lessons from this pandemic in order to prevent another one.
- Support development work in the hardest-hit countries, especially projects to get kids back into school and provide work opportunities for adults.
- Help West Africa out of extreme poverty. That’s a U.S. priority.
