Monkeypox Now A Global Health Emergency, World Health Org Declares – Deadline

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Saturday declared a global health emergency over the rapid spread of monkeypox.

Reports indicate that there are more than 16,000 reported cases of the disease in 75 countries. Five deaths have been attributed to the exotic disease, the WHO said.

The US has 2,400 reported cases of monkeypox, the WHO said.

“What’s different now is that we’re seeing cases in other countries that normally don’t have monkeypox,” the WHO website declared. “But in fact, we’ve never seen an outbreak like this before.”

Monkeypox causes a rash which can be uncomfortable, itchy, and painful. It is endemic in Africa, and US officials are concerned it could become more common here. There are vaccines and treatments for monkeypox, but neither are widespread or easily available yet.

“We have an outbreak that has spread around the world rapidly, through new modes of transmission, about which we understand too little,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a statement.

“For the moment this is an outbreak that is concentrated among men who have sex with men, especially those with multiple sexual partners,” he added. “That means that this is an outbreak that can be stopped with the right strategies in the right groups.”