La Crosse Native Fought Ebola Forty Years Ago

The new Ebola epidemic is so much bigger than any other in the past.  But some lessons from the very first outbreak are likely still applicable.  That’s from one of the USAID workers who was on the ground in Africa nearly 40 years ago during the very first outbreak.  Back then, says La Crosse native Gary Cook, the disease was so new it was his team that named it after a nearby river.  Advice for dealing with Ebola now?

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Cook, now semi-retired and living in Virginia, says the top priority should be to improve the health systems in those countries from which Ebola tends to emigrate.  Do that, he says, and you can stop future epidemics before they begin.