‘Decimated' CDC Could Struggle in Face of Ebola Outbreak

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been left “decimated” by various policy changes over the last year, weakening its ability to respond to a growing Ebolaoutbreak, experts have told Newsweek.

Lawrence Gostin, director of the O'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University, told Newsweek the CDC’s global health capacities “have been decimated, which is evident in its very weak response to the Ebola crisis,” adding that the agency “was not on the ground to detect or respond to the crisis,” adding that the agency “was not on the ground to detect or respond to the crisis.”

The administrative strain comes at a critical time. In February 2025, the Trump administrationcut the CDC workforce by 10 percent, forcing the agency to operate at reduced staffing levels while key senior leadership positions remain vacant. Meanwhile, a recent Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has left over 100 dead with more than 550 suspected cases.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. An American citizen who was in the DRC has also tested positive for the virus and is currently receiving treatment in Germany.

Responding to the concerns about the CDC’s preparedness for the outbreak, a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) spokesperson told Newsweek that the agency is “fully equipped to protect Americans and mitigate risks through experts in this disease area.” They added that the CDC is working with international partners and ministries of health on the evolving situation and is supporting response efforts through its country offices in the DRC and Uganda by various means.

Newsweek has contacted the CDC via email for comment.

The CDC-’A Shadow of Its Former Self’

“For decades, the CDC always led the global response to Ebola and other health emergencies, but now the CDC is a shadow of its former self,” Gostin said. He added that the agency has been “missing in action, and it no longer has the world class epidemiologists and scientists that were the envy of the world.”

Historically, the CDC has been viewed as a global leader in disease control and a premier source of health information, boasting some of the top experts in the world.

“It has been painful to see the CDC’s funding and staff slashed,” Gostin said. The CDC is at “its weakest ebb in generations,” he added, saying the cuts have been “devastating.”

The CDC has also experienced a turbulent year within its leadership ranks: a Senate-confirmed director was fired after just weeks on the job, several acting directors rotated in and out under federal time limits, and a wave of senior officials resigned.

Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center and professor of epidemiology at Brown University, told Newsweek that 80 percent of the agency’s top director positions remain vacant, leaving the CDC without a permanent director to lead decision-making and policies. Meanwhile, there’s also no leadership in place to coordinate the agency’s day-to-day operations against infectious diseases.

“Key programs have been cut, personnel with deep expertise have been lost, and agency morale has been weakened by unrelenting political attacks,” Nuzzo said. “No federal agency can function properly under those conditions.”

She added that this was a “dangerous situation that prevents our once storied health agency from fulfilling its statutory obligation to protect American citizens”-a reality that persists while the agency attempts to manage multiple deadly outbreaks, including measles, hantavirus, and Ebola.

Beyond internal staffing cuts, Gostin noted that the U.S.’s withdrawal from the WHO has left the nation “isolated.”

The Trump administration dismantled U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and froze foreign aid at the start of this year. The U.S.-based nonprofit Physicians for Human Rights warned earlier this week that abrupt foreign aid cuts have “disrupted frontline health services and infectious disease programs in conflict-affected eastern DRC, leaving communities more vulnerable at precisely the moment sustained international public health engagement when it is needed most.”

Latest Updates on the Ebola Outbreak

As of May 22, health authorities in the DRC and Uganda reported 575 suspected cases, 51 confirmed cases, and 148 suspected Ebola deaths in the DRC, though the CDC notes these figures are fluid. Uganda has recorded two confirmed cases linked to travel from the DRC, including one death, though officials state no further spread has been detected.

An American physician, Dr. Peter Stafford, who was exposed to the virus while treating patients in the DRC tested positive on May 17. He was subsequently transferred to Germany for treatment alongside other high-risk contacts.

In response, the U.S. has implemented precautionary measures to prevent domestic transmission while public risk remains low. On Monday, the CDC and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) instituted enhanced screening and entry restrictions under a Title 42 public health order. The measures target travelers arriving from outbreak-affected countries, including the DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan.

The outbreak has also disrupted major global events. The DRC has cancelled its pre-World Cup training camp, and next week’s India-Africa Forum Summit has been officially called off.

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This story was originally published May 23, 2026 at 4:00 AM.