Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has pledged $25 million to the Centers for Disease Control Foundation to help fight the Ebola virus.
Zuckerberg announced on Oct. 14 on his official Facebook page that he and his wife, Priscilla Chan, will make the donation.
“We need to get Ebola under control in the near term so that it doesn’t spread further and become a long term global health crisis that we end up fighting for decades at large scale, like HIV or polio,” Zuckerberg wrote.
“We believe our grant is the quickest way to empower the CDC and the experts in this field to prevent this outcome. We are hopeful this will help save lives and get this outbreak under control.”
A second health care worker at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital who cared for Thomas Eric Duncan, who died last week after contracting the virus, has tested positive for Ebola, according to reports.
Zuckerberg and Chan were the most generous Americans in terms of their charitable giving last year, according to a Chronicle of Philanthropy report. Last year, the couple donated nearly $1 billion worth of Facebook stock to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation. Much of their giving has focused on educational issues, including $120 million they donated in May to Bay Area schools. — j. wire reports