Former neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson believes that Ebola can be used for bioterrorism, Newsmax.com reported.
Carson, a prominent John Hopkins professor of pediatric neurosurgery, expressed concern over the U.S. arrival of two missionary workers to receive treatment for Ebola, which they contracted while treating those infected with the virus in Liberia. Over 900 people have died from Ebola since the start of the current outbreak in West Africa, including the countries Sierra Leone and Guinea.
Bringing the missionary workers to the U.S. increases the chances of someone spreading Ebola for terroristic purposes- such as through a vial of contaminated urine, the doctor said Wednesday on Fox News' "Your World with Neil Cavuto."
"So if there were a container of contaminated urine, and somehow it managed to find its way to someplace a lot of damage can be done," Carson said.
The doctor's comments are similar to ones Donald Trump recently made during a Twitter rant about the arrival of Americans Nancy Writebol and Dr. Kent Brantly. Both patients are said to be improving after receiving doses of an experimental drug made from tobacco plants.
Ebola, which has a high fatality rate and no known cure, is not an airborne disease and can spread through bodily fluids. But Carson believes that doesn't matter because the virus can survive in body fluids outside the body for several days.
For example, "Someone comes up to a lab worker. He knows he's got the urine. 'How would you like to have a million dollars?'...Such things have been known to happen," the doctor said.
Tevi Troy, former deputy secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, told Newsmax it's not impossible for Ebola to be used for bioterrorism.
"However, there is no evidence that that has happened at this point, and furthermore, it is very difficult to do that."
