• FluTrackers.com Inc. does not provide medical advice. Information on this web site is collected from various internet resources, and the FluTrackers board of directors makes no warranty to the safety, efficacy, correctness or completeness of the information posted on this site by any author or poster. The information collated here is for instructional and/or discussion purposes only and is NOT intended to diagnose or treat any disease, illness, or other medical condition. Every individual reader or poster should seek advice from their personal physician/healthcare practitioner before considering or using any interventions that are discussed on this website. By continuing to access this website you agree to consult your personal physican before using any interventions posted on this website, and you agree to hold harmless FluTrackers.com Inc., the board of directors, the members, and all authors and posters for any effects from use of any medication, supplement, vitamin or other substance, device, intervention, etc. mentioned in posts on this website, or other internet venues referenced in posts on this website.
  • We are not asking for any donations. Do not donate to any entity who says they are raising funds for us.

Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

MHSC

MHSC

Senior Moderator
Finally, something substantial!


Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight outbreak, sources say
Published September 15, 2014

The Obama administration plans to ask Congress to approve $1 billion to fight Ebola, sources say, as the U.S. military command in Africa makes countering the deadly disease its highest priority.

The increased funding would result in the deployment of approximately 3,000 U.S. military personnel, the creation of a joint task force commanded by a three-star officer, military provision of logistics and mobility support, three field medical facilities and a training program for health care workers

...

The request would not be in addition to money that's already been approved, but rather, re-appropriating existing funding.

The fight against Ebola is considered, in part, a national security issue because the disease threatens fragile governments in Africa and could lead to more safe havens for terrorists. The request falls under the jurisdiction of the Pentagon because the military has the capacity to set up quarantine camps.

Sources told Fox News on Monday that the request is expected to be discussed Tuesday at the Senate Armed Serviecs Committee hearing with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey. But the sources said they believe the requested amount is a lot to reprogram.

....

According to a senior military official, Dempsey said at a recent meeting: "The Department of Defense's number one priority is combating Ebola."

....

?This is an instance where we should be running toward the burning flames with our fireproof suits on," Alexander said in a statement. "This is an emergency. We need to recognize it, and we need to find and work with other countries in the world that recognize it.?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...foxnews/politics+(Internal+-+Politics+-+Text)
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

Using force for quarantine camps is certain disaster. Hopefully they meant support for afflicted communities.
Thornton
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/09/14/it-doesnt-make-sense-concerns-over-tasking-dod-with-ebola-mission-amid/
?It doesn?t make sense?: Concerns over enlisting DoD in Ebola response

By Lucas Tomlinson
Published September 14, 2014
The Obama administration?s decision to enlist the Defense Department in responding to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa is raising concerns that the task is pulling the already-stretched military away from other missions, including vital counter-terrorism operations.

According to a senior military official, General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said at a recent meeting: "The Department of Defense's number one priority is combating Ebola."

However, a Defense Department source told Fox News that alarms had been raised about the decision.

?We don?t need to be taking planners away from the CT [counterterrorism] mission, and that is what is going on,? the Defense Department source said.

...

But the Defense source said that military leaders were ?cornered? by the White House with the response mission, and that USAID and CDC are ?begging? for military help when they should be the ?lead.? The source said the government is turning to DOD because the NGOs that agencies typically work with on the ground have fled...
Click to expand...

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/16/world/africa/obama-to-announce-expanded-effort-against-ebola.html
Obama to Announce Expanded Effort Against Ebola

By HELENE COOPER and MICHAEL D. SHEARSEPT. 15, 2014

...

In addition, Mr. Obama is expected to announce that he is appointing a woman as an Ebola czar to coordinate the American response, along with an increase in the number of doctors and other health care workers being sent to West Africa. The military is likely to provide medical supplies and training for African health care workers as they seek to contain the virus...
Click to expand...

So we know the sex of the czar, but no qualifications?
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

Thornton said:
Using force for quarantine camps is certain disaster. Hopefully they meant support for afflicted communities.
Thornton
Click to expand...
Agreed. MSF were very clear on what kind of impact US troops with combat weapons would have on the level of trust they needed to be able to function.
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

I think we can all agree that this is a major step in the right direction towards a major coordinated effort, but the mechanism seems very poorly thought out. Why can't DoD simply support CDC/USAID? Making it an explicit military operation is likely to not help, the current levels of distrust and suspicion.....
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

I'm glad to see Obama finally woke up. I have to wonder what was said that jolted him into reality. Given that he has more accurate and up to date info than we do, are we about to find out something has changed significantly?

I don't view troops going in as a bad thing, I'm overjoyed at 3000 more sets of hands to set up tents, beds and do initial screening. They will be covered head to toe in PPE anyway. Now we have a chance at beating this.
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

Given that he has more accurate and up to date info than we do, are we about to find out something has changed significantly?
Click to expand...

I don't see that as a given.

Also I don't see 3,000 more hands on deck as a good thing UNLESS the czar is as qualified as Tom Friedan to manage them. Head to toe PPE is no match against ebola when workers are hot, tired & sleep-deprived. They need to know how to get the PPE on and off safely, and how to decontaminate equipment that can't be tossed after 1 use.

We could see a billion dollars worth of US taxpayer funded folly here if politics, lobbying and personal enrichment and aggrandizement is behind this operation.
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

WASHINGTON?President Barack Obama plans to dramatically boost the U.S. effort to mitigate the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, including greater involvement of the U.S. military, people familiar with the proposal said.

...

The strategy has four components: control the outbreak at its source in West Africa; build competence in the region's public-health system, particularly in Liberia; bolster the capacity of local officials through enhanced training for health-care providers; and increase support from international organizations, such as the United Nations and the World Health Organization.


...

The U.S. military has sent eight service members to the region, including doctors, a logistician and medical specialists. It also said it would send a 25-bed portable hospital unit to Liberia to help care for health workers, but it isn't planning to staff it. Many public-health and infectious disease experts have called for a greater U.S. military role, which is highly valued in humanitarian crises for its ability to command and control large operations, as well as its logistics expertise.

....

U.S. defense officials have ruled out sending hospital ships or the big-deck amphibious ships that frequently respond to humanitarian disasters. One official said if the virus got aboard one of those ships, it could quickly spread and would be difficult to stamp out.

...

The crisis also has become too large for aid organizations and health ministries to handle alone, they say. The current response, involving several local and international agencies and organizations, also lacks coordination.

...

The military could be used to direct supplies, set up tent hospitals, and tap the masses of medical personnel that are needed globally to get the sick into isolation and treatment, so they stop spreading the disease to others and improve their chances of recovery.

....

And while hundreds of millions of dollars in aid have recently been pledged, under current circumstances it won't arrive in West Africa for weeks - by which time thousands more will be infected and dead.

Mr. Obama hopes to begin to turn the situation around with the rollout of his new strategy, administration officials said.

"We think these measures, this enhanced response, will help us bring this under control," an administration official said Sunday. "The military has unique capabilities in terms of logistical capacities, in terms of manpower, in terms of operating in austere environments."

....

Joanne Liu, international president of Doctors Without Borders, called earlier this month for governments to send in their militaries. The aid organization has led treatment efforts since the beginning of the Ebola outbreak and has been warning for months that a bigger response is needed.

"Without this deployment, we will never get the epidemic under control," she said.

http://online.wsj.com/articles/obama-plans-major-ebola-offensive-1410738096
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

From MHSC above
The military could be used to direct supplies, set up tent hospitals, and tap the masses of medical personnel that are needed globally to get the sick into isolation and treatment, so they stop spreading the disease to others and improve their chances of recovery.
Click to expand...

The medical interventions for managing biowarfare are quite different from a medical response to international epidemics. To my knowledge there are no masses of medical personnel to deploy. The vast majority of doctors who can work, are working. Even if they could call up a large percentage of the existing medical national guard units I doubt thoughtful leaders would send them en mass to this type of environment. The encouragement comes from the infrastructure support the military can bring. Hopefully they will publish the plan soon.
JT
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

Obama to ramp up U.S. response to Ebola with military mission
BY JEFF MASON
WASHINGTON Tue Sep 16, 2014 5:21am EDT

(Reuters) - The United States will ramp up its response to the Ebola crisis in West Africa with plans to build 17 treatment centers, train thousands of healthcare workers, and establish a military control center for coordination, U.S. officials said.

The plan will be unveiled by President Barack Obama on Tuesday, senior administration officials told reporters.
...
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014...B08S20140916?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

How long with Obama's plan take to implement? The numbers are dynamic and the situation is constantly evolving. Are 3,000 people going to be enough in however long it takes for Congress to approve this plan? Will Congress approve this plan or will it be another opportunity for a political standoff between the parties?
 
Re: Ebola crisis: Obama administration to ask Congress for $1 billion to fight

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/18/world/africa/ebola-world-bank-west-africa-economy.html
...
“We don’t need all this time-consuming, so-called consultation, or consensus building,” Mr. Ban said. “There is a consensus already that this is very serious and urgent. This spreads and doubles in three weeks’ time. So it’s a matter of take action. We have to save the people.”
...
This is encouraging… It appears Mr. Ban wants to fast track the process.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom