Ebola outbreak in Congo declared a global health emergency

dely Ebola outbreak in Congo is w an international health emergency, World Health Organization anunced Wednesday after a case was confirmed in a city of 2 million people.

A WHO expert committee declined on three previous occasions to vise United Nations health ncy to make declaration for this outbreak, even though or experts say it has long met required conditions. More than 1,600 people have died since August in second-deliest Ebola outbreak in history, which is unfolding in a region described as a war zone.

A declaration of a global health emergency often brings greater international attention and aid, along with concerns that nervous governments might overreact with border closures. declaration comes days after a single case was confirmed in Goma, a major regional crossros in rastern Congo on Rwandan border, with an international airport. Also, a sick Congolese fish trer traveled to Uganda and back while symptomatic — and later died of Ebola.

While risk of regional spre remains high, risk outside region remains low, WHO chief Tedros ham Ghebreyesus said after anuncement in Geneva. international emergency “should t be used to stigmatize or penalize very people who are most in need of our help,” he said. Tedros insisted that declaration was t me to raise more money — even though WHO estimated “hundreds of millions” of dollars would be needed to stop epidemic.

Dr. Joanne Liu, president of Doctors Without Borders, said she hoped emergency designation would prompt a rical reset of Ebola response efforts.

“ reality check is that a year into epidemic, it’s still t under control, and we are t where we should be,” she said. “We cant keep doing same thing and expect different results.”

Liu said vaccination strategies should be broened and that more efforts should be me to build trust within communities. U.S. ncy for International Development applauded WHO decision and said USAID officials would “continue to scale up life-saving support” to end outbreak.

This is fifth such declaration in history. Previous emergencies were declared for devastating 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in West Africa that killed more than 11,000 people, emergence of Zika in Americas, swine flu pandemic and polio.

WHO defines a global emergency as an “extraordinary event” that constitutes a risk to or countries and requires a coordinated international response. Last month, outbreak spilled across border for first time when a family brought virus into Uganda after attending burial in Congo of an infected relative. Even n, expert committee vised against a declaration.

Alexandra Phelan, a global health expert at Georgetown University Law Center, said Wednesday’s declaration was long overdue.

“This essentially serves as a call to international community that y have to step up appropriate financial and technical support,” she said but warned that countries should be wary of imposing travel or tre restrictions. Such restrictions “would actually restrict flow of goods and health care workers into affected countries so y are counterproductive,” she said. Future emergency declarations might be perceived as punishment and “might result in or countries t reporting outbreaks in future, which puts us all at greater risk.”

WHO h been heavily criticized for its sluggish response to West Africa outbreak, which it repeatedly declined to declare a global emergency until virus was spreing explosively in three countries and nearly 1,000 people were de. Internal documents later showed WHO held off partly out of fear a declaration would anger countries involved and hurt ir ecomies.

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organization’s emergency committee will meet again within three months to assess situation. Committee members will review wher outbreak is still a global emergency and wher or measures are needed.

Wednesday’s anuncement prompted fear in eastern Congo, where many do business across borders and travel overseas.

“I am vaccinated and I protect myself against Ebola,” said Zoe Kibwana, a 46-year-old shoe salesman who does business in Uganda, just 70 kilometers (40 miles) from Beni. “Closing borders would handicap our ecomy. health ministry and WHO need to end this epidemic as soon as possible.”

current outbreak is spreing in a turbulent Congo border region where dozens of rebel groups are active and where Ebola h t been experienced before. Efforts to contain virus have been hurt by mistrust among wary locals that has prompted dely attacks on health workers. Some infected people have deliberately eved health authorities.

pastor who brought Ebola to Goma used several fake names to conceal his identity on his way to city, Congolese officials said. WHO on Tuesday said man h died and health workers were scrambling to trace dozens of his contacts, including those who h traveled on same bus.

Congo’s minister of health resisted characterization of outbreak as a health emergency.

“We accept decision of committee of experts but one hopes that it’s a decision that wasn’t me under pressure of certain groups that want to use this as a way to raise funds for certain humanitarian actors,” said Dr. Oly Ilunga.

Those working in field say outbreak is clearly taking a turn for worse despite vances that include widespre use of an experimental but effective Ebola vaccine.

Dr. Maurice Kakule was one of first people to survive current outbreak after he fell ill while treating a woman last July, before outbreak h even been declared.

“What is clear is that Ebola is an emergency because epidemic persists despite every possible effort to educate people,” he told Geneva meeting.

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