10/31/2022 Research successfully integrated into the Ebola outbreak response in Africa (Nature) Clinical trials conducted during Ebola outbreaks in Africa have been crucial in expanding the capacity to combat the disease. The latest Ebola outbreak in Uganda is expected to further improve knowledge on the disease, including testing new tools and vaccines.
10/27/2022 Moderna Nears US Deal to Develop Shots for Ebola, Other Biological Threats (Bloomberg) Moderna Inc. is close to clinching a deal with the US Department of Defense to develop messenger RNA vaccines targeting a range of biological threats such as Ebola virus. The contract will see Moderna work with researchers from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston to build on the company’s mRNA technology that was used to rapidly make Covid-19 vaccines, according to people familiar with the situation who were not authorized to speak on the deal because it has not yet been finalized. Ebola has returned to the fore as a vaccine-resistant strain of the deadly virus spawned an outbreak in Uganda that began in September.
10/26/2022 Moderna Nears US Deal to Develop Shots for Ebola, Other Biological Threats (Bloomberg) Moderna Inc. is close to clinching a deal with the US Department of Defense to develop messenger RNA vaccines targeting a range of biological threats such as Ebola virus.The contract will see Moderna work with researchers from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston to build on the company’s mRNA technology that was used to rapidly make Covid-19 vaccines, according to people familiar with the situation who were not authorized to speak on the deal because it has not yet been finalized. Ebola has returned to the fore as a vaccine-resistant strain of the deadly virus spawned an outbreak in Uganda that began in September.
10/24/2022 Merck locates frozen batch of undisclosed Ebola vaccine, will donate for testing in Uganda’s outbreak After inquiries from Science, company confirms it produced and retains a candidate vaccine that could help bring the viral threat under control. In a revelation that may help Uganda combat its outbreak of Ebola, the pharmaceutical giant Merck has acknowledged to Science—after repeated inquiries—that it has up to 100,000 doses of an experimental vaccine for the deadly viral disease in its freezers in Pennsylvania and will donate them. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ugandan government are discussing whether and how these doses can be incorporated into one or more clinical trials of other candidate Ebola vaccines that could launch as soon as next month.
10/21/12022 EU allocates emergency funding of €3 million to Uganda (European Commission) Following the outbreak of Ebola virus disease in Uganda, declared on September 2022, the EU has mobilised further emergency funding of €3 million to support the response to the outbreak. Part of this funding (€1.5 million) will support the World Health Organization in its coordination and surveillance activities, safe and dignified burials, as well as logistics and follow up and care of survivors. €1 million will be allocated to UNICEF to address infection prevention and control, as well as risk communication and community engagement; while €500,000 will be allocated to the International Rescue Committee for preparedness and infection prevention and control in the most exposed refugee settlements.
10/21/2022 Three ETUs/Isolation Centers Stood Up in Kampala (NTV Uganda)
10/20/2022 (CBS News) World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday that he is “concerned” about the possible scope of the Ebola outbreak in Uganda, which was first reported last month. So far, Uganda has reported 60 confirmed cases, 20 probable cases and 44 deaths, Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during Wednesday’s briefing. Twenty-five people have recovered. The Ministry of Health is investigating eight recently reported cases that seemed to have no link to known contacts already infected with Ebola, the director-general said.
10/18/2022 The U.S. Response to Ebola Outbreaks in Uganda (CDC) The Uganda Ministry of Health (MOH) announced the first positive case of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in Uganda in 2022 caused by Sudan virus (species Sudan ebolavirus) on September 20. At this time, there are no confirmed cases of Ebola virus disease related to this outbreak reported in the United States or other countries outside Uganda, and the current geographic scope of this outbreak in Uganda is small. As part of the U.S.’s efforts to address this outbreak with the international community, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Agency for International Aid and Development (USAID) are working closely with public health departments, public health laboratories, and healthcare workers throughout the U.S., Uganda, and neighboring countries to raise awareness and address this outbreak.
10/18/2022 U.S. sends experimental antibody, antiviral drug to Uganda for Ebola outbreak (Reuters) The United States sent Gilead Sciences’ remdesivir and Mapp Biopharmaceutical Inc’s experimental Ebola antibody drug MBP134 to Uganda last week to help safeguard healthcare workers
10/17/22 Uganda President Museveni puts Kampala on high alert (Monitor) Two patients, one of them, a male, died in Kiruddu Hospital last week. The other, the man’s wife, tested positive in Kitebi Health Centre IV in Kampala and has been isolated in Entebbe with her baby. While the two cases that tested positive came from Mubende District and are regarded as Mubende cases, because of the presence of contacts of these two cases and the risks of infection.
10/16/2022 Uganda has locked down two districts in a bid to stem the spread of Ebola (NPR) Ugandan authorities on Saturday imposed a travel lockdown on two Ebola-hit districts as part of efforts to stop the spread of the contagious disease. The measures announced by President Yoweri Museveni mean residents of the central Ugandan districts of Mubende and Kassanda can’t travel into or out of those areas by private or public means. Cargo vehicles and others transiting from Kampala, the capital, to southwestern Uganda are still allowed to operate, he said. All entertainment places, including bars, as well as places of worship are ordered closed, and all burials in those districts must be supervised by health officials, he said. A nighttime curfew also has been imposed. The restrictions will last at least 21 days.
10/14/2022 Uganda, WHO, USAID partner to strengthen protection of health workers amid Ebola outbreak (Healthcare Africa) The Ministry of Health in Uganda has acquired an assorted set of Viral Haemorrhagic Fever (VHF) Kits from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to enhance the protection of health workers responding to the current Ebola outbreak. The government agency announced that USAID, through the World Health Organization (WHO), donated VHF kits consisting of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) and other Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) supplies for health workers to safely care for Ebola patients in treatment centers.
10/12/2022 Nine African Nations Join WHO’s Push to Halt Ebola in Uganda (Bloomberg) Nine African countries will join the World Health Organization in efforts to curb the spread of Ebola in Uganda and boost the level of preparedness in the region. The WHO has been pushing for a rapid response because of the nature of the hemorrhagic disease and as regional trade and cultural connections mean movement between Uganda and its neighbors is extensive. The East African nation also “hosts many refugees who continue to keep ties with their countries of origin,” the agency said in statement on Wednesday.
10/11/2022 Ebola Will Spread If Resources Are Not Brought to Bear MedPageToday – Acting swiftly and decisively to extinguish the Ebola outbreak in Uganda is an important priority not just for Uganda, but for Africa and the world. The current outbreak has, thus far, been confirmed to have killed 10 — including 4 healthcare workers — and while over 40 cases have been confirmed, none have been outside of Uganda where several districts are reporting cases. However, there is a strong possibility that it will spread to other countries. If resources are not brought to bear, that spread is likely to be an eventuality.
10/6/2022 Health Alert U.S. Embassy Kampala – The Ugandan Ministry of Health (MOH) declared an outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) caused by the Sudan ebolavirus strain (SUDV) in 5 districts in Uganda with a number of confirmed deaths and cases. No vaccines or therapeutics have been approved for prevention or treatment for SUDV. CDC has updated its Level 2 Travel Notice as of October 4, 2022. U.S. citizens should be prepared for travel disruptions and possible health screenings throughout the region. Quarantines may be in effect in some countries in the region, especially for those exhibiting fevers or other symptoms of SUDV, and for those who have recently traveled to affected areas.
10/6/2022 CDC Asks U.S. Physicians To Monitor For Ebola As Uganda Outbreak Grows Forbes – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asked U.S. health care practitioners on Thursday to monitor for potential Ebola infections, as an outbreak of the disease in Uganda impacts dozens of people—though no U.S. cases have been confirmed, and infections in Uganda remain much lower than during the infamous 2014-2016 outbreak in West Africa. The CDC issued a health advisory Thursday to “remind clinicians about best practices” about Ebola, and said it was communicating with public health departments and healthcare workers to raise awareness about the outbreak in Uganda, which has killed 10 people since it began last month. The U.S. Embassy in Uganda also announced Thursday that all passengers flying from Uganda to the U.S. who have been in the east African country 21 days before their arrival will be routed to five airports in the New York City area, Atlanta, Chicago or Washington for enhanced health screenings.
10/6/22 U.S. to Begin Screening Air Passengers From Uganda for Ebola NY Times – There are no cases in the United States, but federal health officials also urged doctors to be vigilant for patients with symptoms. Worried by an outbreak of Ebola in Uganda, the Biden administration said on Thursday that travelers who had been to that country would be redirected to airports where they can be screened for the virus and warned physicians to be alert for potential cases in the United States. No cases of Ebola have yet been reported outside Uganda, but the virus — which spreads only through contact with bodily fluids and is not airborne — is highly contagious. American officials are watching the Uganda outbreak closely because there are no approved vaccines or treatments for the type of Ebola virus causing the outbreak there.