Medical Countermeasures

• The Department of War and the National Institutes of Health signed an interagency agreement to develop medical countermeasures against emerging infectious diseases and CBRN threats. • The partnership focuses on research and development for pandemic influenza and chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear hazards. • This collaboration aims to strengthen the national ability to respond to large-scale health crises and weaponized biological or chemical attacks.

• A public health emergency occurred in May 2026 involving the Bundibugyo virus (Orthoebolavirus bundibugyoense) across the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. • The disease is characterized by high mortality rates, yet it currently lacks licensed vaccines, approved therapeutics, and widespread diagnostic implementation. • This outbreak highlights a critical gap in medical countermeasures and a lack of understanding regarding the virus's reservoir ecology.

• A public health emergency occurred in May 2026 across the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda due to an outbreak of Bundibugyo virus disease. • The disease, caused by *Orthoebolavirus bundibugyoense*, is characterized by high mortality rates and a lack of understood reservoir ecology. • Current medical responses are hindered by limited diagnostic implementation and a total absence of licensed vaccines or therapeutics specifically approved for this species.