President Barack Obama discussed the Ebola epidemic on Monday with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, French President Francois Hollande and top US public health and national security officials.
He and Ban reviewed the international response to the epidemic in West Africa and the need for more robust commitments and rapid delivery of assistance by the international community, the White House announced.
Citing the threat the epidemic poses, the President "stressed the need for all UN member states to support the UN appeal, and to provide the personnel, equipment and supplies required to stop the epidemic at its source and halt the devastating impact of this crisis on the affected countries and their citizens," the announcement said.
Both leaders agreed that, given the threat posed by Ebola, "at this crucial juncture members of the international community must redouble their resolve and commitment to stay the course and decisively address the Ebola crisis," it said.
In his phone conversation with Hollande, the two discussed coordinating actions to contain the Ebola epidemic in West Africa as well as the threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the White House announced.
On the Ebola outbreak, the two agreed "that more must be done, and quickly, to establish treatment facilities in the affected African nations, and that all countries must play a role to stop the spread of this disease and to save the lives of those afflicted," the White House said. They also discussed additional measures that may be taken to stem the spread of Ebola outside the region already affected, including passenger screening upon departure and arrival, the statement said.
On ISIL, Obama thanked Hollande for France's "significant contribution" to coalition efforts to strike ISIL targets in Iraq and to provide training to the Iraqi Security Forces, the announcement said. The two discussed ongoing efforts to counter ISIL forces in the region and the need for coalition partners to take action to counter the threat from ISIL, it said.
During the White House meeting with members of his public health and national security team, Obama received an update on the response to the diagnosis of a second Ebola case in Dallas, Texas.
The President was briefed on the status of the investigation into the apparent breach in infection control protocols at the Dallas hospital and remedial actions under way to mitigate similar breaches in the future, the White House said.
Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell and Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, described the surge in personnel and other resources to Dallas to assist in the investigation as well as other measures to heighten awareness and increase training for health-care workers throughout the country, the statement said.
The President "reinforced that this investigation should proceed as expeditiously as possible, and that lessons learned should be integrated into future response plans and disseminated to hospitals and health-care workers nationwide," it said.