Health workers in Congo receive Ebola vaccine amid outbreak
Congo has launched an Ebola vaccination campaign using the Ervebo vaccine to combat the deadliest outbreak in the country's history. Health authorities are prioritizing frontline workers as the virus continues to spread amid regional insecurity and displacement.
Why it matters
The current Ebola outbreak is described as out of control, posing a significant threat to regional and global public health.
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KISANGANI, Congo (AP) — Congo on Thursday began vaccinating people against Ebola as health authorities work to slow the fastest-growing outbreak of the disease in history .
Health workers and other frontline workers in the Ebola response are being prioritized to receive the Ervebo vaccine that was effective in past Ebola outbreaks caused by a different, more common type. Clinical trials are going on to find a licensed vaccine for the current outbreak.
“We have decided to use the Ervebo vaccine to protect first those who are on the front line,” Health Minister Roger Kamba said at the launch of the vaccination campaign in Kisangani, the capital of Tshopo, which is one of the six provinces affected by Ebola in the east.
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