President Barack Obama participates in a meeting in the Cabinet Room. (Associate Press)
President Barack Obama is naming Ron Klain, a former chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden and a trusted adviser at the Obama White House, as the point man on the US government's response to the Ebola crisis.
Obama has been under pressure to name an Ebola "czar" to oversee health security in the US and actions to help stem the outbreak in West Africa.
Klain has been out of government since leaving Biden's office during the Obama's first term. The White House said that Klain would report to national security adviser Susan Rice and to homeland security and counterterrorism adviser Lisa Monaco.
Klain, a lawyer, also served as chief of staff for Vice President Al Gore. He previously served under Attorney General Janet Reno in the Clinton administration.