Dangerous pathogens left unsecured at labs across Africa. Halted inspections for mpox, Ebola and other infections at airports and other checkpoints. Millions of unscreened animals shipped across borders.
The Trump administration’s pause on foreign aid has hobbled programs that prevent and snuff out outbreaks around the world, scientists say, leaving people everywhere more vulnerable to dangerous pathogens.
That includes Americans. Outbreaks that begin overseas can travel quickly: The coronavirus may have first appeared in China, for example, but it soon appeared everywhere, including the United States. When polio or dengue appears in this country, cases are usually linked to international travel…
The timing is dire: The Democratic Republic of Congo is experiencing the deadliest mpox outbreak in history, with cases exploding in a dozen other African countries.
The United States is home to a worsening bird flu crisis. Multiple hemorrhagic fever viruses are smoldering:
Ebola in Uganda,
Marburg in Tanzania, and
Lassa in Nigeria and Sierra Leone…
In 2023, U.S.A.I.D. invested about $900 million to fund labs and emergency-response preparedness in more than 30 countries. The pause on foreign aid froze those programs. Even payments to grantees for work already completed are being sorted out in the courts.
Organizations funded by the United States helped keep dangerous pathogens in check around the world. Now many safeguards are gone, and Americans may pay the price.
www.nytimes.com
Since Trump has been elected we’ve seen a massive measles outbreak and the most inept response by any presidential administration is history.
Since Trump has saw fit to gut programs that kept this nation safe global diseases, when they come to our shores you will have him to thank for it.