These Researchers Would Be in Africa Fighting Ebola-but Trump Cut Their Funding

A rapidly growing Ebola outbreak in Ituri province in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been difficult to contain. A global network of research centers focused on emerging infectious diseases has been unable to help on the ground. The network’s funding was reduced by the Trump administration, including amid conspiracy theories about Covid-19 origins. The Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases (CREID) Network, established by the National Institutes of Health in 2020, studied viruses that spill over from wildlife to people, including Ebola-related viruses. NIH provided about $82 million over five years, but a stop-work order in June halted research, citing safety and taxpayer value. Researchers cannot provide testing or sequencing support during the outbreak.

"As the world struggles to contain the rapidly growing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Ituri province, a vital network of research centers has been unable to help on the ground. The reason: The Trump administration slashed its funding last year, in part due to conspiracy theories about the origins of Covid-19."

"Established in 2020 by the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases (CREID) Network was conducting research into viruses that emerge from wildlife and spill over to people, including the family of viruses that Ebola belongs to. The network operated 10 sites around the world where these types of disease outbreaks are likely to occur, including in Central and East Africa."

"NIH provided CREID with approximately $82 million in funding over five years, and its funding was up for renewal in 2025. But last June, the centers received a stop-work order stating that their research had been deemed "unsafe for Americans and not a good use of taxpayer funding," and that the agency's priorities no longer supported the network."

"He says he is talking to colleagues in the DRC and reviewing data about the outbreak, but isn't able to offer support with testing or sequencing. "We sit here in San Diego and see this unfold," he says. "The whole network would have mobilized,""

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