CDC officials say a lab tech may have come into contact with a small amount of live Ebola virus. (AFP/Getty )
A lab technician is being monitored for possible exposure to the Ebola virus, according to officials with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Spokeswoman Barbara Reynolds said in an statement emailed Wednesday that the person working in a secure laboratory in Atlanta may have come into contact with a small amount of a live virus that was part of an Ebola experiment.
Reynolds said the potential exposure is under internal investigation and has been reported to Secretary of Health and Human Services Sylvia Burwell. Reynolds said additional employees have been notified, but none has required monitoring.
CDC Director Tom Frieden said he’s troubled by the employee’s potential exposure.
In June, at least 52 workers at the CDC took antibiotics as a precaution because a lab safety problem was thought to have exposed them to anthrax.
