President Obama devoted his weekly address Saturday to the subject of Ebola for the second week in a row, seeking to reassure people that Ebola patients and Americans “can beat” the deadly virus.
Obama heralded the release of Nina Pham, the Dallas nurse who contracted Ebola caring for Thomas Eric Duncan, who was the first person to die of Ebola in the United States. Pham was released from a National Institute of Health hospital in Maryland on Friday after being declared virus-free.
The president also addressed the recent diagnosis of a New York doctor with Ebola.
“The city and state of New York have strong public health systems, and they’ve been preparing for this possibility,” Obama said.
Obama also offered some “basic facts” on the spread of the virus.
“The only way you can get this disease is by coming into direct contact with the bodily fluids of someone with symptoms. That’s the science. Those are the facts,” he said. Infectious disease experts say the virus is not airborne, despite public statements by officials such as New York Republican Rep. Peter King.
The African nations of Senegal and Nigeria were declared free of Ebola this week, although a case was announced in Mali.
More than 10,000 people, the vast majority of whom live in Africa, have now been diagnosed with Ebola, according to the World Health Organization.
4,922 of those people have died.
