American Public Health Association Supports Emergency Funding Request to Enhance Ebola Response

The American Public Health Association today announced its strong support for the Obama administration’s request for emergency funding to enhance our nation’s response to the Ebola epidemic, both domestically and internationally.

“The Ebola outbreak is a public health emergency, and we should treat its funding as such,” says APHA executive director Georges C. Benjamin, MD. “It is crucial that we develop a comprehensive strategy for preventing and containing the disease. Granting this emergency funding request is vital to improving our current efforts to stop the spread of Ebola in West Africa and to preventing an outbreak from occurring in the United States. It is a wise investment in equipment, training and other resources that will improve readiness among state and local health departments and hospitals in the U.S.”

The administration is seeking $4.64 billion for immediate response to the epidemic, in order to strengthen U.S. public health systems and preparedness, address the outbreak in West Africa and enhance efforts at developing treatments for the disease, among other activities. Another $1.54 billion has been requested as a contingency fund to put resources in place to address long-term requirements of the epidemic.

“The full funding request should be granted as emergency funding and not be subject to current budget caps, so as not to reduce funding for other critical public health programs,” says Benjamin. “We urge Congress to quickly approve this request and help control the spread of this disease.”

Source: American Public Health Association