Liberia's president apologized Saturday for the high death toll among the country's healthcare workers who have fought an Ebola outbreak, which has killed nearly 1,000 people in Africa.
President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf pledged up to $18 million for the Ebola fight, part of which will be given to health workers to help with insurance and death benefits, to fund more ambulances and to increase the number of treatment centers. The death toll among those tasked with treating patients has been high: Three doctors in and 32 health care workers in Liberia have died after contracting the disease.
"If we haven't done enough so far, I have come to apologize to you," she told hundreds of health workers who gathered at Monrovia's City Hall for a meeting with her government.
The West African Ebola outbreak, centered on Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, is the worst in history. The World Health Organization said on Friday it is an international health emergency that will likely continue spreading for months. Nigeria has also seen the disease, although in fewer numbers.
IN-DEPTH
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