Craig Spencer MD MPH Profile picture
Feb 26 6 tweets 2 min read Read on X
Make a huge mistake. Then make a false claim about how you fixed it.

They did it for PEPFAR.

Now Ebola.

I follow this particular topic VERY closely, so here's what really happened and why this isn't true AT ALL...🧵
On January 29, Uganda reported an Ebola outbreak.

Normally the U.S. would've very quickly sent one of our Ebola experts to help the response.

But this time, we didn't.

Because we couldn't.

Because this administration wouldn't let them go right when this outbreak was declared.
And normally the U.S. would've helped set up border screening and other measures on the ground.

But this time, we didn't.

Normally, we would've spoke with the WHO about helping end the outbreak.

But this time, we didn't.

Because CDC staff weren't even allowed to talk to them.
I've been told by a colleague that Uganda tried calling the White House to notify them of the outbreak for 2 days...but no one answered the phone.

Two months ago we had amazing experts working on global health security there.

Now there appears to be no one to pick up a phone.
You know who does 'Ebola prevention' here in the U.S.?

The CDC.

Hundreds of these frontline experts lost their jobs last week as part of indiscriminate 'cost saving' firings. More cuts are expected.

USAID has long supported Ebola response efforts overseas. Not no more.
So, it's NOT true to say 'one of things we accidentally cancelled very briefly was Ebola prevention' and that it was quickly restored...

Because you've hobbled or directly dismantled the response structures needed to end Ebola outbreaks abroad and protect us here in the U.S.

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More from @Craig_A_Spencer

Feb 16
There was an ‘Ebola scare’ in NYC.

Or, at least there was on social media.

Viral posts manufactured a lot of things that just weren’t true.

NYC health commissioner already debunking this misinformation.

BUT this event DOES highlight something that is really important… 🧵 Image
In ‘normal’ times—that is, before we slashed USAID and CDC—we would’ve had a lot of boots on the ground responding to the Ebola outbreak in Uganda and the Marburg outbreak in Tanzania.

Guess what, now we don’t.

Because with the new Trump admin restrictions, we couldn’t.
In ‘normal’ times, USAID would’ve help establish border screenings at the airports to detect cases before they could get on a plane.

Guess what, this time they didn’t.

Thankfully, WHO stepped up this time.

Who knows what’ll happen next time.
Read 8 tweets
Dec 22, 2024
It’s being reported that the Trump administration plans to withdraw from the World Health Organization on day one.

This is not a huge surprise.

But it IS an absolutely stupid and self-defeating move.

And I say this as a longtime critic of the WHO…🧵
The first time the Trump administration tried to withdraw from the WHO back in 2020, I wrote for @USATODAY what we needed to do was build up, not tear down, the WHO.

Despite its faults, the WHO plays a huge role as ‘our eyes and ears around the world.’

usatoday.com/story/opinion/…
There is no other organization with the relationships and buy-in to do the critical work needed to keep us ALL safe—including us here in the U.S.

The WHO also has critical partnerships & programs that we benefit from for vaccines and critical health data

who.int/initiatives/gl…
Read 6 tweets
Dec 19, 2024
Hey @elonmusk, that’s not ‘bioweapon labs’

I’m (unfortunately) very uniquely qualified to tell you why this is important. And why you’re very wrong here.

I assure you, with 100% certainty, that cutting this is pure stupidity

(Also, did you read a few more lines to Sec 2315c?)
For anyone paying attention (is anyone still actually even here??)…

THIS 👆👆👆 is exactly how overconfidence mixed with a stunning lack of expertise and stubborn unwillingness to listen to people who actually know what they’re talking about will directly put you at risk.
I could happily speak on the congressional floor for hours about why we need BSL-2, BSL-3 (and BSL-4) labs. So could a lot of really qualified folks, many way smarter than me.

We could also talk about what happens if we don’t have them, and how that puts us all at risk.
Read 6 tweets
Dec 6, 2024
"What's happening with this mystery illness in the Congo"

I've gotten this text dozens of times in the past few days.

Here's what we know. What we don't.

And what really matters 🧵 Image
Since the end of October, there have been just under 400 cases of an 'unidentified' illness in the Kwango Province of Southwest DR Congo.

And 79 reported deaths.

Symptoms include "fever, headache, coughing, breathing difficulty, and anemia".

Kids under 5 appear most affected. Image
Breathing difficulties and other signs suggest a respiratory disease and likely respiratory transmission.

Epidemiologists have been sent to the area.

Testing is in process, with results expected in the next few days.

BUT we don't know anything for certain...
Read 11 tweets
Nov 12, 2024
10 years ago today I walked out of the hospital after surviving Ebola.

Back then I begged the world to strengthen our response to that crisis and prepare for others.

I’ve been reflecting on what we’ve learned over the last decade.

And the role of the U.S. in global health🧵 Image
The international response to Ebola in 2014 was way too slow and weak.

Too many people died because we didn’t have the experience, coordination or willpower to address the crisis quickly and head on.

In the aftermath, we focused on lessons learned. We made changes.
We created new ways to fund outbreak response at the global level.

The Africa CDC was created to help the continent better prepare for and respond to disease threats.

And changes were made in U.S. government to allow better coordination among agencies.

africacdc.org/about-us/our-h…
Read 15 tweets
Sep 30, 2024
As news of the Marburg cases in Rwanda spreads, I want to share some thoughts on where the outbreak stands, what will likely come next, and why this outbreak may (hopefully) end up being unlike other viral hemorrhagic fever outbreaks in the past 🧵
For those just tuning in, Marburg is a viral hemorrhagic fever, very similar to Ebola.

This is the 18th Marburg outbreak since 1967.

Most outbreaks fizzle out fast. This one, despite being just announced days ago, is already among the largest.

Although the incubation period, symptoms, and spread are very similar to Ebola, there are some really important differences.

Most importantly, we have FDA/WHO approved vaccines and treatments for Ebola.

But we only have experimental therapeutics and vaccines for Marburg.

fda.gov/emergency-prep…
Read 15 tweets

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