There is clearly an Ebola scare happening in the United States. It’s a nasty disease and that has attracted widespread media attention. Is there anything your compliance team should do about Ebola?
I’ll assume that your firm does not have operations or personnel in West Africa. If it does, then yes, you should be concerned about Ebola and contacting professionals.
For the rest of us, there is little to worry about.
There have been three confirmed cases of Ebola in the United States and one death. Those are tragic. But very small. If your compliance program is so robust that you can worry about such infinitesimal risks, I congratulate you.
Let’s put the Ebola risk in perspective.
Influenza, the seasonal flu, typically kills between 3,000 and 49,000 people each year according to the CDC. Influenza is much more contagious and can spread through the air in the workplace. (Ebola cannot.) It sounds like your compliance team should spend much more time making sure all employees get their flu shots than to worry about Ebola.
There were 4,405 fatal workplace injuries in 2013. Nine percent of those were homicides. It sounds like you should be more worried about an active shooter than Ebola.
There were three workplace deaths attributed to lightning in 2013. You are three time more likely to die from a lightning strike at work as you are to catch Ebola in the United States. How is your lightning compliance program?
Sources:
- Estimating Seasonal Influenza-Associated Deaths in the United States: CDC Study Confirms Variability of Flu from the CDC
- Contagion in the Workplace? Dealing With Employees’ Ebola Fears
- Guidance for Employers Regarding Ebola
- Confronting Ebola Concerns in the Workplace
- Swine Flu and Ethics
- Financial Cost of Ebola Crisis Sparks Insurance Coverage Questions
- Cases of Ebola Diagnosed in the United States from the CDC