Monkeypox Declared a Public Health Emergency by the US

Monkeypox was declared a public health emergency by the US as vaccines and tests for monkeypox are hard to come by for many.

Monkeypox Declared a Public Health Emergency by the US

Monkeypox Declared a Public Health Emergency by the US

On Thursday, the department of health and human services declared the outbreak of monkeypox in the US a public health emergency. The recent declaration will give space to more resources and funding that are needed to quickly respond to the outbreak and this is including vaccines, testing, and treatments. The declaration also will facilitate more coordination between the three arms of government, federal, state, and local officials and it is also expected to loosen other restrictions put on health care.

The white house national monkeypox response coordinator, Robert Fenton in a statement said that “We are applying lessons learned from the battles we’ve fought — from COVID response to wildfires to measles, and will tackle this outbreak with the urgency this moment demands,”

The Outbreak Was Declared a Global Health Emergency in July

The monkeypox outbreak was declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization back in late July. Some major cities and states in the US, including California, New York, and Illinois, have all put their very own public health emergency declarations in place. Pressure had been mounting on the Biden-led administration to do the same for the remaining part of the US.

Monkeypox as you should know is a disease that’s very much similar to smallpox, but it is however typically much less severe. Monkeypox is not a new disease, but cases however have quickly grown this summer in countries where it doesn’t normally spread. There are now over 7,000 known cases of monkeypox in the United States alone, with the outbreak still ongoing.

Nmonkeypox Is Treatable

You should also know that vaccines that work against monkeypox do exist, as do some medications that are expected to be effective against the disease. Vaccinating people at higher risk of getting the disease, however, has been difficult at the moment due to the limited supply of Jynneos, which is the newer vaccine that is being shipped out to US states.

No Deaths Have Been Reported In the US

There haven’t been any deaths reported in the US at the moment, but monkeypox as an illness can be very painful for some people. Monkeypox mostly spreads from very close proximity and contact, such as from sexual activity or living with someone. And presently, the vast majority of cases in the US and European countries are in men who have sexual intercourse with men, although anyone can get the disease.

What the Director-General of WHO has to Say

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in July said that the fight against monkeypox should help to protect the health and dignity of communities that are impacted. “Stigma and discrimination can be as dangerous as any virus,” Tedros cited.

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