The U.S. moved quickly to stem the Ebola virus from taking on massive proportions, but experts say the threat was a wake up call.
Dr. Irwin Redlener, director of Columbia University's National Center for Disaster Preparedness, said the U.S. needs a central authority and coordination among a constellation of federal, state and local agencies.
"What we have here are a collection of random acts of preparedness," Redlener told The Boston Globe. "Again, we're laser-focused on what happened yesterday."
Redlener said the appointment of federal Ebola czar Ronald Klain was an important step that enabled the U.S. to fight the virus, still considered a major global threat.
Despite the widespread news of Ebola's outbreak and the apparent fright triggered by its rapid spread, Ebola is relatively easy to contain compared to some other unknown viruses, experts indicated.
Thomas Eric Duncan was misdiagnosed in a Dallas hospital and infected two nurses with the virus. His fiancee and those who lived with him never caught Ebola. People with the disease are noticeably ill and can be isolated.
But if Duncan had been carrying a new type of flu or a bug, the lack of an organized U.S. health response system could have been deadly.
And relying on the good will and untested competence of private hospitals is not a strategy that enables consistency. Different hospitals respond differently to health emergencies.
The costs for new protective garb needed to combat Ebola emerged just as suddenly as the virus itself, also.
The Dallas experience showed that standard-issue garb worn by hospital workers was inadequate. Two nurses contracted the virus either through an opening in the neck of their garb or when they removed it.
Hospitals took on the financial burdens of creating new spaces for hospital workers to put on and remove their equipment, and many have not been reimbursed for costs yet.
