“US Senator Charles E. Schumer today announced, after his urging, more than $32 million in federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) funding will be provided to reimburse New York’s designated Ebola Treatment Centers,” the statement, issued on Friday, said.
New York City Ebola treatment centers will receive $21.7 million for preparation efforts, which includes the full reimbursement to the city’s Bellevue Hospital for successfully treating Dr. Craig Spencer, the first person in the city to test positive for the deadly virus.
An additional $7.5 million will be given to Long Island and upstate New York treatment centers.
“I worked hard in Congress to make sure New York hospitals were not left behind, and urged HHS Secretary [Sylvia] Burwell to reimburse them for the costs of preparing for Ebola,” Schumer said in the statement. "I am pleased HHS heeded my call and prioritized New York’s hospitals for going above and beyond to help prepare for Ebola,” he added.
Schumer explained the state’s Ebola treatment centers spent millions to prepare for the deadly virus by training thousands of health care workers to identify and treat Ebola, as well as for purchasing new equipment, including Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) suits.
The federal funding would cover “most of the funding New York’s designated Ebola Treatment Centers used to prepare for Ebola,” he said.
The latest Ebola outbreak began in southern Guinea in 2013 and spread across west Africa. The outbreak triggered fears around the globe that the virus could make it to other continents, with several cases of Ebola contraction reported in Europe and the United States.
The Ebola virus has killed more than 9,000 people, according to the latest World Health Organization estimates, and the number of confirmed Ebola cases has exceeded 22,525.
