A Comment published in The Lancet argues that the United States’ withdrawal from the World Health Organization and sweeping cuts to global health funding are directly compromising the response to the ongoing Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV) outbreak, with implications that extend far beyond the current crisis.
The Comment, authored by Krutika Kuppalli (UT Southwestern Medical Center), Craig Spencer (Brown University), Martin Cetron (Emory University), and Debra Houry (Yale School of Public Health), marks the first comprehensive assessment of how the January 2026 U.S. withdrawal from WHO has affected an active public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC).
The policy context
The United States terminated its WHO membership on January 22, 2026, per a joint statement by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The Bundibugyo ebolavirus outbreak was declared a PHEIC by WHO on May 17, 2026, involving active transmission across the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, with displacement camps in eastern DRC.
Direct impacts on the outbreak response
The Comment documents multiple ways the funding and institutional cuts have affected the ground-level response. An independent study by Michigan State University (May 26, 2026) tracked reduced CDC capacity to protect public health. A CNN report (May 22, 2026) documented that aid workers on the ground reported directly compromised response capacity due to U.S. funding cuts.
In a particularly striking development, the Kenyan Minister ordered a halt to construction of a U.S. Ebola treatment facility in Kenya (The Guardian, June 23, 2026). Travel restrictions imposed on Americans returning from Ebola-affected areas and the prevention of some exposed Americans abroad from returning home (STAT News, June 5, 2026) further discouraged humanitarian medical volunteers from deploying.
Broader security implications
The Comment warns that these actions collectively erode U.S. leadership in global health security, contrasting sharply with the central role the U.S. played during the 2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak. The authors argue that the current BDBV outbreak highlights the gap left by reduced U.S. engagement in international health institutions.
Notably, the Africa CDC and WHO have developed a joint continental response plan modeled after the mpox response strategy, suggesting a shift toward African-led health security architecture in the absence of U.S. leadership.
A first case was identified in France on June 24, 2026, a humanitarian doctor returning from DRC, demonstrating that the outbreak’s global reach has not diminished, while the response system has weakened.
The Comment serves as a warning that global health security requires sustained, multilateral commitment, and that withdrawing from that commitment has measurable consequences for disease control, regardless of national borders.
Disclosure: Based on The Lancet Comment (Volume 408, Issue 10550, p94-97, July 11, 2026). The Lancet page is paywalled; content reconstructed from metadata and corroborating sources.
Sources:
1. Kuppalli K, Spencer C, Cetron M, Houry D. “The US Ebola response and the future of global health leadership.” The Lancet. 2026;408(10550):94-97. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(26)01291-2/fulltext