Paul Allen gives $11 million more to help fight future health crises



SEATTLE (AP) — A year after donating $100 million to fight against Ebola, billionaire Paul Allen has announced seven more grants totaling $11 million to build infrastructure to prepare for future health crises.

The Microsoft co-founder said Wednesday he was making new grants to deal with gaps in health care infrastructure that challenged international response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

The grants will do things like:

—Develop a virtual food supply chain ahead of future pandemics.

—Help aid organization share data and information to identify emerging disease outbreaks and improve response times.

—Set up mobile labs, pharmacies and other health-care facilities.

—Develop new technology or improve existing technology for diagnosing diseases in remote areas.