Doctor Exposed To Ebola Now Being Treated In Md.

BETHESDA, Md. (WJZ) -- An American doctor exposed to the Ebola virus while volunteering in Sierra Leone is in isolation now at NIH.

Pat Warren reports the condition of the patient has not been released.

The doctor arrived in Frederick Sunday wearing a protective suit and was taken by ambulance to the Clinical Care Center of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda.

The doctor was exposed to the Ebola virus while working as a volunteer in Sierra Leone, but according to NIH, he does not yet have the disease.

The NIH says the patient was admitted out of an abundance of caution and is there for observation and research and, if necessary, treatment.

NIH is testing an Ebola vaccine.

"We do not have the kind of control over it that is necessary to put an end to it right now," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, NIH Chief of Infectious Diseases.

"We are not moving fast enough," said President Barack Obama.

The physician's relocation to Bethesda is part of President Obama's latest push to accelerate the role of the United States in fighting the virus.

"Everybody's got to move fast in order for us to make a difference and, if we do, we'll save hundreds of thousands of lives," Obama said.

Donations of gowns and gloves and other potentially life-saving supplies are being shipped to West Africa, where protective gear is in short supply.

Dr. Rick Sacra---who was infected in Liberia---was released from Nebraska Medical Center last week.

"The CDC has declared me safe and free of virus. Thank God. I love you all," Sacra said.

Dr. Sacra was treated with an experimental drug and serum made with the blood plasma of Dr. Kent Brantly, another medical missionary recently recovered from the virus.

"From the time I fell sick just less than two months ago, the death toll has tripled," Brantly said.

Again, the patient admitted to NIH Sunday has been exposed to---but reportedly not infected with---the disease.

NIH says it is taking every precaution to ensure the safety of patients, staff and the public.

According to the CDC, the Ebola virus has killed close to 3,000 people in just a few months.

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