WHO maintains 'global emergency' label on DRC Ebola

The World Health Organization has extended its designation of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo as a global health emergency. The decision was partly made to keep global attention on the epidemic.

The WHO’s Emergency Committee unanimously agreed to continue the designation known as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern for the DRC, which gives the organization more power to limit the spread of the disease.

The WHO’s assessment of the situation means the risk of Ebola spreading within the DRC and regionally remains but low globally.

The WHO declared the DRC’s Ebola outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in mid-July after the first confirmed case was discovered in Goma.

Since the outbreak was declared on August 1, 2018, it has become the second-largest Ebola outbreak on record with a death toll of 2,253 and 3,308 confirmed cases, according to WHO data.

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