"exacerbate a problem" is a correct and usable phrase in written English.
It means to make a problem worse or more severe. Example: The lack of rainfall will only exacerbate the problem of water scarcity in the region.
That would exacerbate a problem already besetting the agency.
"That will exacerbate a problem that already existed," Jayaraman said.
I make these observations not to exacerbate a problem but in the hope that we can stop this craziness before things escalate.
Mr. Soloway said lowering the amount that contractors could be paid would exacerbate a problem already experienced by government agencies — keeping good people with government salaries.
Using reserves would fix a problem that doesn't exist, since the gap in global supply will be plugged anyway, and it would exacerbate a problem that does: the amount of fear in the market.
Another charge levelled against these broadcasts is that they exacerbate a problem inherent in some arts prizes namely that their purpose is above all to publicise and sell things rather than to reward excellence.This influences both what gets chosen and who does the choosing.
The current indie famine exacerbates a problem festival-land has encountered again and again in the last few years: too many events, too few decent acts.
This week's heat wave exacerbates a problem city officials say endangers children and hampers the Chicago Fire Department's efforts to extinguish fires.
At a time when Dubai is struggling with more than $100 billion in debt, the gasoline shortages are exacerbating a problem that has existed for years as the cash-strapped fuel retailers look for solutions.
But increasingly scientists have put the blame on people, who exacerbated a problem caused by the life-cycle of the high altitude bamboo that is the panda's staple diet.
