PoliticsPoliticscdc-ebolaebola outbreak

CDC Chief On Ebola: The U.S. 'Won't See A Large Number Of Cases'

CDC Chief On Ebola: The U.S. 'Won't See A Large Number Of Cases'
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Senior Politics Reporter, HuffPost

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UNITED STATES - SEPTEMBER 29: Thomas Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, speaks during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on health, safety and distribution of flu vaccine in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. Disruptions from swine flu may cost U.S. businesses $20 billion, twice the amount of a typical flu season, said Edolphus Towns, chairman of the committee. (Photo by Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Sunday that he is "confident" the United States will not see an Ebola outbreak, despite concerns raised by the string of mistakes made by a Texas hospital treating an infected patient.

Frieden said on CNN's "State of the Union" that the patient in Dallas is so far the only confirmed case of Ebola diagnosed in the U.S. The CDC knows of 10 people who definitely had contact with the patient and 40 more who might have had contact, but all of them are being closely watched.

"Every one of them will be monitored every day to see if they develop a fever, and if they do, they'll be promptly isolated. That's how you stop it in its tracks," Frieden said. "And that's why we're confident that we won't see a large number of cases from this."

Frieden acknowledged that U.S. hospitals had been unprepared for Ebola and have made a few mistakes. The Texas hospital had originally misdiagnosed the patient and turned him away. Then it experienced delays with disposal of the patient's highly contagious medical waste -- a mistake Frieden called a "teachable moment."

"It's the first time we've had to deal with that situation, and just by chance, there had been a glitch in the government system to approve a waste removal company to do that," Frieden said. "That's been resolved. Wish it had been resolved sooner, but it's resolved."

The biggest challenge in containing the Ebola epidemic, Frieden said, is stopping the spread of the virus in Africa. President Barack Obama significantly increased U.S. support for that effort last month.

"It's going to take time," Frieden said. "The virus is spreading so fast that it's hard to keep up. That's why it's terrific that the president has deployed the Department of Defense there in support of the disease control efforts. This is exactly what's needed, and it's going to make a difference."

Frieden noted that the Ebola outbreak has produced "the largest CDC response in our history."

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Before You Go

Ebola Lockdown
(01 of17)
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Empty streets are seen, as Sierra Leone government enforces a three day lock down on movement of all people in an attempt to fight the Ebola virus, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(02 of17)
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An empty local market area is seen, as Sierra Leone government enforces a three day lock-down on movement of all people in a attempt to fight the Ebola virus, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(03 of17)
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An empty local market area is seen, as Sierra Leone government enforces a three day lock-down on movement of all people in a attempt to fight the Ebola virus, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(04 of17)
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Police guard a roadblock as Sierra Leone government enforces a three day lock down on movement of all people in an attempt to fight the Ebola virus in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(05 of17)
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An empty local market area is seen at Waterloo, as the Sierra Leone government enforces a three day lock down on movement of all people in an attempt to fight the Ebola virus, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(06 of17)
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Police guard a roadblock as Sierra Leone government enforces a three day lock down on movement of all people in an attempt to fight the Ebola virus, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(07 of17)
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A trader sits at an empty local market area in Waterloo, as Sierra Leone government enforces a three day lock down on movement of all people in an attempt to fight the Ebola virus, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(08 of17)
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Police guard a roadblock as Sierra Leone government enforces a three day lock down on movement of all people in an attempt to fight the Ebola virus in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Friday, Sept. 19, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(09 of17)
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In this Sept. 19, 2014 photo, an Ebola virus health care worker takes a rest outside a Ebola isolation unit in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone confined its 6 million people to their homes Friday for the next three days as the Ebola-ravaged West African country began what was believed to be the most sweeping lockdown against disease since the Middle Ages. (AP Photo/Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(10 of17)
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In this Sept. 19, 2014 photo, Idrissa Kargbo, Sierra Leone's National marathon champion who took part in the New York marathon, in recent years, joins Ebola volunteers going from house to house to look for Ebola virus patients in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(11 of17)
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A health worker volunteer talks with residents on how to prevent and identify the Ebola virus in others, and distributes bars of soap in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(12 of17)
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Health worker volunteers talk to a resident to distribute bars of soap and information about Ebola in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(13 of17)
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Health worker volunteers distribute bars of soap and information about Ebola in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(14 of17)
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A health worker volunteer marks a home with chalk to identify that it has been visited, as they distribute bars of soap and information about Ebola in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(15 of17)
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A health worker volunteer talks with residents on how to prevent and identify the Ebola virus in others, and distributes bars of soap in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014. Thousands of health workers began knocking on doors across Sierra Leone on Friday in search of hidden Ebola cases with the entire West African nation locked down in their homes for three days in an unprecedented effort to combat the deadly disease. (AP Photo/Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(16 of17)
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In this photo taken on Friday, Sept. 19, 2014, Idrissa Kargbo, Sierra Leone's national marathon champion, helps volunteers distribute information on Ebola in Freetown, Sierra Leone. As a boy, marathon runner Idrissa Kargbo sprinted through the villages of Sierra Leone on errands for his grandmother and later as a coffee courier. Now at 23 years old, his times have qualified him for races on three continents. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
(17 of17)
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In this photo taken on Friday, Sept. 19, 2014, Idrissa Kargbo, top right, Sierra Leone's national marathon champion, helps volunteers distribute information on Ebola in Freetown, Sierra Leone. As a boy, marathon runner Idrissa Kargbo sprinted through the villages of Sierra Leone on errands for his grandmother and later as a coffee courier. Now at 23 years old, his times have qualified him for races on three continents. (AP Photo/Michael Duff) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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