Today, TIME Magazine named Ebola health workers their “Person of the Year.” I want to take a moment to applaud this decision.

I haven’t been shy about expressing my concern that the brave men and women going to combat the virus aren’t getting the welcome home they deserve.

It seems that Time Magazine agrees. In a multi-cover issue of the magazine, they profiled why they made the decision to highlight the work of doctors and nurses on the font lines of the epidemic.

Nancy Gibbs, Time’s Editor-in-Chief had this to say:

“Ebola is a war, and a warning. The global health system is nowhere close to strong enough to keep us safe from infectious disease, and “us” means everyone, not just those in faraway places where this is one threat among many that claim lives every day. The rest of the world can sleep at night because a group of men and women are willing to stand and fight. For tireless acts of courage and mercy, for buying the world time to boost its defenses, for risking, for persisting, for sacrificing and saving, the Ebola fighters are TIME’s 2014 Person of the Year.”

Right on Nancy.

Ebola Fighters are risking their lives to save others. Their efforts are helping to contain the virus in West Africa and by doing so are keeping us safe at home.

These workers are heroes, plain and simple. I’m glad to see them start to get the recognition they deserve.

Below are the various Time covers from this edition:

Time

So join me in congratulating the heroic health workers in the comments.

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Tom Blake