U.S. quarantine moves hurting Ebola response in Africa: Harvard

(Reuters) – Moves by some U.S. states to isolate medical workers returning from fighting Ebola in West Africa could worsen the global health crisis by discouraging badly needed new volunteers, according to health experts at Harvard University. Ebola has killed more than 5,450 people in West Africa since March in the disease’s worst outbreak on record, striking hardest in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, which are among the world’s...

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47 dead as plague spreads to Madagascar capital

Madagascar said Monday it was trying to contain an outbreak of plague — similar to the Black Death that swept medieval Europe — that has killed 47 people and is spreading to the capital Antananarivo. The health ministry said there had been 138 suspected cases since the beginning of the year, and warned the death toll was likely to rise in coming months… (read more)

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Mali confirms eighth Ebola case

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Mali has confirmed a new case of Ebola, bringing to eight the number of people who have fallen ill with the deadly disease in the West African country. A government statement issued Monday night said the patient had been placed in a treatment center. All of Mali’s Ebola cases can be traced back to a 70-year-old imam who was brought to the country from Guinea, where the epidemic first began… (read more)

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Deadline to curb Ebola ‘won’t fully be met’

  A deadline of December 1 to contain the Ebola virus will not be fully met due to escalating numbers of cases in Sierra Leone and elsewhere, the UN Ebola Emergency Response Mission which had set the target, said. The mission set the goal in September, seeking to have 70 percent of Ebola patients under treatment and 70 percent of Ebola victims safely buried. That target will be achieved in some areas, head of UNMEER Anthony Banbury told Reuters...

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Top UN health officials take joint mission to Mali in support of Ebola response

24 November 2014 – The Executive Director of Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), Michel Sidibé and the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr. Margaret Chan, have visited Mali in a joint mission to support the country in its efforts to curb the spread of Ebola, as authorities there announced one new case and that two more suspected patients were being tested. “The next 15 days are critical for ending Ebola in Mali,”...

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A Tale of Two Outbreaks: Why Congo Conquered Ebola

Two outbreaks, two entirely different outcomes. The World Health Organization has declared an outbreak of Ebola over in the Democratic Republic of Congo after just 66 cases and 49 deaths. It lasted three months. Yet the epidemic in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea’s been going for nine months, with more than 15,000 cases, 5,000 deaths and no end in sight. What’s the difference? Experts say… (read more)

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Italy’s first case of Ebola confirmed

  An Italian doctor who contracted Ebola while working in Sierra Leone is being repatriated to Italy for treatment, health officials in Rome confirmed on Monday. The doctor had been working since October 18 at a small clinic about 10 miles west of capital of Freetown with the humanitarian group Emergency before developing a fever, testing positive for the virus and being isolated, according to… (read more)

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The next Ebola? Health officials try to prepare for future outbreaks

The next Ebola or the next SARS. Maybe even the next HIV. Even before the Ebola epidemic in West Africa is brought under control, public health officials are girding for the next health disaster. “It’s really urgent that we address the weak links and blind spots around the world,” Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told The Associated Press. “Ebola is a powerful reminder that a...

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Sick move: Australia shuts borders to ‘Ebola-affected’ African countries

Australia is the first country to temporarily close its borders to people traveling from West African states battling against the Ebola epidemic. The move comes despite the fact the Ebola-free country has not sent aid workers to any afflicted regions. Immigration Minister Scott Morrison told parliament on Monday, Australia has issued a blanket visa ban for those traveling from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. “This means we are not processing...

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