Firm tied to Trump's sons won nearly $40 million in Ebola screening and outbreak contracts, ProPublica reports
ProPublica says XpresTest's CDC and State Department awards came months after a fund linked to Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump invested about $30 million in its parent, XWELL.
Published
Claim
XpresTest, whose parent XWELL took investment from a fund linked to Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, won nearly $40 million in federal Ebola screening and outbreak-response contracts, ProPublica reported and @propublica posted on 9 November 2026 (UTC).
What's supported
- USAspending.gov lists the CDC Ebola entry screening contract to XpresTest with $18.8 million obligated and an extent-competed status of not competed.
- ProPublica reported a $20 million State Department outbreak-response award to XpresTest, which the State Department said was made through a competitive process.
What's not established
- Why the CDC contract was awarded from only one source; the CDC did not respond to ProPublica.
- Whether XpresTest can complete the Congo work its parent company's CEO called risky.
What would confirm it
Award records for the State Department grant, or CDC comment on how the airport-screening contract was awarded.
XpresTest, a subsidiary of the airport spa company XWELL, won nearly $40 million in federal contracts to screen for Ebola and respond to disease outbreaks months after a fund linked to Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump invested in its parent company, ProPublica reported on November 9. @propublica posted the investigation on X at 11:31 UTC.
The awards are a $20 million State Department grant for outbreak response in the Democratic Republic of Congo and an $18.8 million CDC contract for Ebola entry screening at U.S. airports, according to ProPublica. The USAspending.gov record for the CDC contract lists $18.8 million obligated, a potential value of $35.5 million, solicitation procedures of "only one source" and an extent-competed status of "not competed."
XWELL chief executive Ezra Ernst told ProPublica that XpresTest won both contracts in a competitive bidding process, and the State Department said its award was made "through a competitive process that builds on this successful model." Ernst also called international work "a new thing for us" and said of the Congo award: "This is a risky contract. I'm not sure we can do it."
American Ventures, a fund launched by Dominari Holdings, a firm with offices inside Trump Tower, invested about $30 million in XWELL in February, when its valuation was $3 million, ProPublica reported. A spokesperson for Donald Jr. and Eric Trump told ProPublica they are "merely passive, minority investors in a fund that invested in this company" and had no involvement in its government contracts.
XWELL did not announce either contract, ProPublica reported, and Ernst said the contracts played a role in the $13 million sale price when XWELL agreed in July to sell XpresTest and its spa line to a private facial spa company.
The CDC contract appears in federal spending records and the State Department described its award to ProPublica, while the CDC did not respond to ProPublica's request for comment.