Mr. Speaker, the United States has already contributed $100 million, and it will spend up to $75 million more to provide 1,000 treatment beds in Liberia, the worst-hit country, and 130,000 protective suits for health workers. The Obama administration has asked Congress for another $88 million to send additional supplies and public health experts to develop potential Ebola medications and vaccines. The CDC has 103 staff in West Africa working on outbreak control, and plans to send another 50.
I am wondering if the government accepts that the international response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa has been inadequate and that we must dramatically scale up the response. Will the government respond to the WHO's request? It needs $600 million to respond.