Africa CDC declares mpox a public health emergency
Al JazeeraJUL 2024
The latest strain of the mpox virus has quickly spread across at least 13 Central African nations. This outbreak demands urgent attention from the world to avoid a worsening crisis. By declaring the mpox outbreak a public health emergency, the African health authority hopes to mobilize the resources needed to effectively address and prevent the virus from spreading further. Urgent global action is required to help Africa procure 10M doses of the mpox vaccine.
While a new strain of mpox is spreading in Africa, the American public is less aware and fearful of it than in 2022. However, the majority of US adults know that individuals exposed to mpox can receive a vaccination for people with risk factors and to help prevent its spread. So far, only Africa's central and eastern regions have reported cases of the deadlier mpox strain, but the WHO must issue a global mpox advisory to inform the public of its likely return.
There's a 50% chance that the worldwide number of confirmed monkeypox (mpox) infections will be at least 6.7K in 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.