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Emory, DeKalb dispute NYT story on Ebola

Metro ATL

Emory, DeKalb dispute NYT story on Ebola

Created by CDC microbiologist Cynthia Goldsmith, this colorized transmission electron micrograph (TEM) revealed some of the ultrastructural morphology displayed by an Ebola virus virion. Photo provided by the CDC.
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Created by CDC microbiologist Cynthia Goldsmith, this colorized transmission electron micrograph (TEM) revealed some of the ultrastructural morphology displayed by an Ebola virus virion.   Photo provided by the CDC.

Created by CDC microbiologist Cynthia Goldsmith, this colorized transmission electron micrograph (TEM) revealed some of the ultrastructural morphology displayed by an Ebola virus virion. Photo provided by the CDC.

An Oct. 13 New York Times story on about how hospitals in the U.S. are reacting to the spread of Ebola virus included a surprising claim.

According to NYT, “As doctors and nurses there worked to keep desperately ill patients alive in August, the county threatened to disconnect Emory from sewer lines if Ebola wastes went down the drain.” The story also claims that pizza companies wouldn’t make deliveries to the hospital.

County spokesperson Burke Brennan says the county made no such threat, and has contacted the newspaper asking for a correction.

“At no point did DeKalb County ever have a statement regarding the termination of their sewer service, ever,” Brennan said.

Emory University Hospital also sent an email claiming that one of its officials made a mistake while talking to a NYT reporter.

“Emory and DeKalb County did communicate about waste management,” the email says. “However, Emory was mistaken in saying that DeKalb County threatened to disconnect it from the sewer line. In addition, Emory used a large autoclave to sterilize medical waste so that it could be removed by its waste management vendor. Originally, couriers would not drive blood samples from Emory to CDC, but that was quickly resolved in discussions with CDC. And pizza delivery to the hospital was refused by at least one vendor early in the process.”

The New York Times story has not been updated as of 2:29 pm on Oct. 14. To read the story, click here.

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