#tomfrieden

Dear Tom Frieden,

Hi, I have a terrible fear that this may be my last letter to you or the CDC. Hopefully, it won't be, but it seems like every couple years there is a new terrible plague on the verge of destroying humanity. My concern for the moment is Ebola. You’ve probably heard of it. So I figure since there is inevitable death around the horizon that you would be a good person to be pen pals with so I can stay informed on symptoms to be concerned about.

I just want to say that I think that you have done an exceptional job as Director of the CDC. I am not saying this so that you like me, or because I think that pandering to you will help give me preferential treatment in case there is some secret Ebola vaccine that you will be able to give out to friends and family. I say this because I can tell you are doing a good job because I am currently alive. I assume that there have been countless deadly diseases that you have protected me and the rest of the world from being exposed to and on behalf of the living and healthy world, I say thanks. Of course the moment I die of some horrific disease, I will change my opinion of your reign as Director of the CDC.

You’re a scientific man, so I’m sure you appreciate that logic. I would surely want someone as logical as me around if there was some sort of disease fueled apocalypse. Just something to remember in case you have some sort of wait list for ZMapp or if in the future there is a limited amount of super secret antidote and you need to decide who gets it. I assume compiling a list of who should live and who should die in case of a pandemic is what you spend the majority of your time doing.

Unfortunately, this Ebola outbreak is devastating, horrific and terribly sad. Especially for the families affected and the countries in West Africa that don’t have the resources to contain the problem. I am sure you have never been busier, and I wish I had some sort of solution or idea to help you out during this crisis. This is kind of out of my league. The best thing I can think of to help out is that whenever I hear about Ebola, I immediately feel the need to wash my hands.

Other than that I’m not going to be much help to you on this one. But know that I am really pulling for you to figure this out. If you need to take a break and feel like writing me a letter back, I’d love to hear what other infections I should be terrified of in the future. If there is a future. Or if you just want to rant about how infuriating it is when parents refuse to vaccinate their children, I am here for you. Write me back, unless there is some terrible disease that can be transmitted by mail. Then you can just email me.

Go Drugs,

Africa contains more than a billion people, and is growing faster than anywhere else in the world. If world leaders don’t make it a priority now to secure up to 500 million doses of an effective Ebola virus vaccine, we may live to regret our inaction. It’s that serious.

Securing 500 million doses of an effective Ebola virus vaccine is going to require a partnership between government and vaccine manufacturers that puts it on the same footing as our response to an emerging global influenza pandemic. This will require mobilizing people and resources on a massive scale... it has to be the international community’s top priority.

It is no use saying "We are doing our best". You have got to succeed in doing what is necessary. --- Winston Churchill

Models from the CDC estimate how many people should be in treatment centers in order to turn back the tide of Ebola in West Africa.

Ebola, by the numbers by Patterson Clark.

In the 30 years I've been working in public health, the only thing like this has been AIDS. --- CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden