Elon Musk Says US Department 'Accidentally' Cut Ebola Prevention

WASHINGTON, Feb 27 (Bernama-dpa) -- Tech billionaire Elon Musk has revealed the US government accidentally cut Ebola virus prevention efforts, German Press Agency (dpa) reported.

Musk told a US Cabinet meeting that the Department of Government Efficiency had made mistakes as it cut jobs and programmes in recent weeks.

"We won't be perfect, but when we make mistake, we'll fix it very quickly."

Musk, who is not a Cabinet member or an elected official, said one such mistake was "accidentally" cancelling Ebola prevention while cutting US development aid agency USAID.

"I think we all want Ebola prevention. So we restored the Ebola prevention immediately, and there was no interruption," Musk said.

"But we do need to move quickly if we are to achieve a trillion dollar deficit reduction in financial year 2026. It requires saving 4 billion dollars per day, every day, from now through the end of September," he added. "But we can do it, and we will do it."

Ebola is a contagious and life-threatening infectious disease. The virus is transmitted through physical contact and contact with bodily fluids.

USAID is one of the largest aid agencies in the world, employing around 10,000 people, two-thirds of whom work outside the United States. It is responsible for doling out much of the US government's humanitarian assistance to developing countries and countries in crisis.

US President Donald Trump's administration has effectively dismantled the agency, placing almost all staff on leave.

Trump froze the agency's funds in January pending an internal review, impacting a vast array of initiatives around the globe.

--BERNAMA-dpa