Ebola outbreak prompts scrutiny of Trump cuts

The Trump administration’s dismantling of US global health infrastructure is coming under intense scrutiny as an Ebola outbreak spreads across the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda.

The deep cuts to US Agency for International Development funding last year likely impacted the response and delayed detection of the virus, according to health experts and congressional Democrats. Some also argue President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the World Health Organization may have hampered the US response to the crisis.

“You can draw a straight line from the Trump administration’s dismantling of our global health infrastructure to the Ebola outbreak,” said Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. He added that USAID cuts “eliminated systems that could have detected the virus earlier, distributed protective equipment faster, and deployed public health workers to track exposure.”

Elizabeth Hoffman, executive director of North America at ONE Campaign, noted that US aid to the DRC plummeted from $1.4 billion in 2024 to $451 million in 2025.

“The US presence — whether it be official government employees or the presence of partners — has dramatically diminished,” she said. “Had we had that presence on the ground, it was much more likely that something would have been flagged.”

State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott countered that “funding and support to combat Ebola continue, working with allies and partners” through the new Global Health Security and Diplomacy Bureau within the department. The US announced plans to fund 50 clinics in the impacted regions, although Uganda’s health ministry said as of Wednesday it had “not been engaged” by the US on treatment centers.