Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk has admitted to making a mistake by cancelling the USAID's Ebola prevention program, a decision that has sparked widespread debate and criticism from health experts and lawmakers. Musk, who attended President Donald Trump's second-term Cabinet meeting, claimed that the cancellation was "accidental" and that efforts were underway to restore the program.

The decision to cancel the program has been met with opposition from health experts, who warn that discontinuing crucial public health initiatives could have devastating consequences. The cancellation has disrupted critical health programs, including clinics providing life-saving medical care and disease prevention measures against tuberculosis and malaria.

Despite Musk's assurance that the pause on Ebola prevention was brief and had been rectified, reports suggest otherwise. The Washington Post revealed that current and former USAID officials confirmed the agency's Ebola containment efforts remain largely halted. This has raised concerns about the administration's response to the Ebola outbreak in Uganda, which reported an outbreak on January 29, 2025.

Dr Craig Spencer, an emergency medicine physician and global public health expert who survived Ebola himself, outlined the consequences of this blunder. He noted that the U.S. did not send one of its Ebola experts to assist in the response, unlike in previous outbreaks. Spencer added that officials in Uganda attempted to contact the White House for days but received no response.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), responsible for Ebola prevention in the U.S., is also losing hundreds of frontline experts due to the Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE) interference. This has raised concerns about the nation's ability to respond to global outbreak risks.

Jeremy Konyndyk, a former USAID official who led COVID-19 and disaster response efforts under Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama, criticized Musk for dismantling the nation's epidemic response infrastructure. He dismissed Musk's claim that Ebola protections had been reinstated as "bunk," arguing that the administration's actions have "shredded all of the systems that the [U.S. government] has built up to protect the U.S. homeland against global outbreak risks."

Democratic Representative Don Beyer of Virginia condemned Musk's casual approach to the situation, stating that "an average person who did something as incompetent as 'accidentally cancelling Ebola prevention' wouldn't be applauded, they'd be fired." He added that Musk is "failing up in this administration because he didn't earn his job, he bought it. It's corrupt, and risks Americans' health and safety."

The controversy surrounding the cancellation of the USAID's Ebola prevention program highlights the ongoing debate about the role of technology and innovation in addressing global health crises. While Musk's efforts to streamline government operations may have been intended to improve efficiency, the unintended consequences of his actions have sparked widespread criticism and concern.

As the administration continues to grapple with the fallout from the cancellation, one thing is clear: the stakes are high, and the consequences of inaction or misaction could be devastating. It remains to be seen how the administration will respond to the criticism and work to restore confidence in its ability to address global health crises.