‘We will make mistakes’: Elon Musk says DOGE accidentally cancelled Ebola prevention, restored it

Tech billionaire Elon Musk said that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) accidentally cancelled Ebola prevention but then quickly restored it. Musk’s comments that come amid a raging controversy on USAID funding and job cuts said that they will make mistakes and won't be perfect.

Musk, who attended US President Donald Trump’s first cabinet meeting sporting a black 'Make America Great Again' cap and a T-shirt that said "tech support", said that there was no interruption. 

"We will make mistakes. We won't be perfect, but when we make mistakes we'll fix it very quickly. For example, with USAID one of the things we accidentally cancelled, very briefly, was Ebola prevention. We restored the Ebola prevention immediately, there was no interruption. But, we do need to move quickly if we are to achieve a trillion dollar deficit reduction in the financial year 2026. This requires saving $4 billion per day, everyday from now through the end of September," he said.

Trump, who introduced Musk as a "tremendously successful guy" who is working really hard with DOGE, said, “He’s sacrificing a lot. He’s getting a lot of praise, I’ll tell you, but he’s also getting hit.”

The Trump administration had earlier announced that it would place most personnel at the USAID on paid administrative leave, except for leaders and critical staff globally. This decision eliminates approximately 1,600 positions within the United States. According to a notice on the USAID website, all direct hire personnel, except essential workers, would be put on leave. The agency is also initiating a Reduction-in-Force, impacting about 1,600 USAID personnel in the US. This move is part of a broader effort led by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to restructure USAID, which serves as a key tool of US foreign assistance. 

Some estimates suggest the number of affected positions could be as high as 4,600. The restructuring comes as Trump vows to rein in spending and cut the federal budget. He had also criticised the organisation’s spending in the weeks leading to the job cuts.

Among other criticisms, Trump alleged that the Biden administration allocated $18 million to India to assist with its elections, questioning the necessity of such funding.