Tech billionaire Elon Musk disclosed that the U.S. government accidentally halted Ebola virus prevention measures during a recent round of job cuts and program reductions. Speaking at a U.S. Cabinet meeting on Thursday, Musk explained that the Department of Government Efficiency made mistakes in its recent efforts to reduce spending.
“We won’t be perfect, but when we make a mistake, we’ll fix it quickly,” Musk said. Although Musk is neither a Cabinet member nor an elected official, he emphasized that one such error involved the “accidental” cancellation of Ebola prevention while slashing funding for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
“We all want to prevent Ebola,” Musk continued. “So we immediately restored the prevention efforts, and there was no disruption.” Musk also stated that the U.S. government needs to act swiftly to meet its goal of reducing the national deficit by a trillion dollars by the 2026 fiscal year. Achieving this, he said, would require saving $4 billion per day until the end of September.
Ebola, a highly contagious and deadly disease, is transmitted through bodily fluids and physical contact. USAID, one of the largest humanitarian aid agencies in the world, is responsible for distributing U.S. development assistance in crisis and developing regions. The Trump administration had effectively disbanded the agency, placing many of its staff on leave and freezing its funds pending an internal review.
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