Ebola survivor and public health expert voices concerns about healthcare worker safety amid new Congo outbreak

Dr. Craig Spencer, an emergency room physician who contracted and survived Ebola in 2014, voiced concerns about healthcare worker safety in a new Ebola outbreak in Congo's Ituri province. The outbreak, announced May 15, 2026, involves 246 suspected cases and 65 deaths of the Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDV) strain—a variant with no approved vaccines or treatments and limited prior outbreak history. Spencer highlighted risks to healthcare workers with close patient contact, particularly during deaths. He also criticized recent U.S. policy changes, including USAID's dismantling and WHO withdrawal, which he argues diminish early-outbreak detection and response capacity. Spencer noted that prior to these changes, CDC and USAID personnel would likely already be on the ground. He acknowledged U.S. pandemic response capabilities remain available through quarantine facilities and high-consequence pathogen centers, citing the recent hantavirus outbreak management on a Dutch cruise ship as evidence.