U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a healthcare affordability event in the South Court Auditorium of The White House in Washington, D.C., on May 18, 2026. (Photo by Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty Images)Kent Nishimura/AFP via Getty Images
The Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., informed ABC News this Monday that his department is endeavoring to handle the ongoing hantavirus and Ebola occurrences. This marks his initial public declaration regarding the Ebola situation ever since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) verified that an American citizen had contracted the virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
“Yes, we are addressing it,” Kennedy mentioned to ABC News when probed about his concerns over the disease outbreaks. The secretary’s remarks happened after the CDC communicated that a “limited number of Americans” are immediately affected by the existing Ebola outbreak in the DRC.
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a healthcare affordability event in the South Court Auditorium of The White House in Washington, D.C., on May 18, 2026. (Photo by Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty Images)Kent Nishimura/AFP via Getty Images
Kennedy offered no comment when questioned about the message he would give to Americans apprehensive about the potential spread of these diseases within the U.S. He communicated to reporters in the Oval Office the previous week that the U.S. has the hantavirus situation “under control.”
“We have this managed, and we are not concerned about it,” he stated at the White House’s maternal healthcare gathering on May 11th. Kennedy further pointed out that the CDC has been engaged with the occurrence since the beginning.
The CDC stated that there have been no verified hantavirus cases in the U.S. connected to the MV Hondius cruise ship and 18 travelers are still being observed at the University of Nebraska.
Meanwhile, Kennedy’s concise remarks concerning the disease events followed a roundtable discussion, where almost $1 billion in fresh funds for states were announced to address PFAS in potable water at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) this Monday.
The secretary has been actively involved in a recent midterm promotion, underscoring the administration’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda during visits to places such as Ohio and California.
During a subsequent session featuring Kennedy and other health officials at the White House, Heidi Overton, Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, emphasized that “there are zero instances of Ebola in America.”
Heidi Overton, the Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, emphasized during the session that “there exist no Ebola cases in America.”
“We aim to maintain it that way, and we are exhausting all options to provide aid to Americans in that region,” Overton included.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com