Radicalized Health Care Workers and the Risk of Ebola as a Bioterror Weapon

Abstract

A biological attack employing the deliberate spread of Ebola virus by radicalized health care workers is a significant public health and national security threat. The chain of custody for medical materials contaminated with Ebola can be vast, and opportunities for health care workers to self-infect themselves with Ebola exist. As demonstrated in recent years, Westerners will support Islamic terror organizations by carrying out attacks on domestic soil. This paper addresses scenarios by which Ebola virus could be disseminated into unsuspecting populations by health care workers. Also elucidated are risk mitigation methods.