The United States has announced an additional $38 million (about R629 million) in funding to support efforts to contain the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).This brings total US funding for the response to more than $200 million.

The announcement comes as the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released scientific reports warning that the outbreak could grow to a scale comparable to, or even larger than, the devastating 2014–2016 West African Ebola epidemic if strong public health measures are not implemented quickly.The current outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment.According to Congolese health authorities, there have been 452 confirmed infections and 82 deaths.Officials also reported 71 new cases within a single 24-hour period, raising concerns about rapid community transmission.CDC modelling suggests that insufficient isolation of infected patients and delayed intervention could allow the disease to spread extensively.

To support containment efforts, the CDC has personnel stationed in both the DRC and Uganda and has recently deployed additional experts to the region.The US government is also taking steps to prevent the virus from reaching American territory.

Measures include travel restrictions affecting people who have recently been in the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan, airport screening procedures, and plans to quarantine exposed US citizens in a facility being developed in Kenya.The policy differs from previous US responses, as symptomatic individuals would not be returned directly to the United States for treatment.

Public health experts have questioned aspects of the strategy, while opposition and legal challenges in Kenya have already delayed construction of the proposed quarantine facility.