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By Betsy Klein, CNN

updated 8:48 PM EDT, Sun September 7, 2014

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama on Sunday signaled for the first time that he is likely to dispatch U.S. military resources to help fight the serious outbreak of Ebola in several countries in West Africa.

"We have to make this a national security priority. We have to mobilize the international community, get resources in there," the President said to Chuck Todd on NBC's "Meet the Press."

"We're going to have to get U.S. military assets just to set up, for example, isolation units and equipment there, to provide security for public health workers surging from around the world."

Obama's comments come after sharp criticism from Dr. Joanne Liu, president of Doctors Without Borders, last week.

"States with the required capacity have a political and humanitarian responsibility to come forward and offer a desperately needed, concrete response to the disaster unfolding in front of the world's eyes ... rather than limit their response to the potential arrival of an infected patient in their countries," Liu said.

Obama cautioned that inaction could have dire consequences.

"If we don't make that effort now, and this spreads not just through Africa but other parts of the world, there's the prospect then that the virus mutates. It becomes more easily transmittable. And then it could be a serious danger to the United States," Obama said.

See more here:
Obama: Ebola 'national security priority'