China News Service, August 5. According to the Associated Press, the U.S. government declared a public health emergency on August 4, local time, to strengthen its response to the monkeypox outbreak.
Color transmission electron micrograph of monkeypox particles (orange) found in laboratory-grown infected cells (brown) in Maryland, U.S., July 26, 2022.
Image source: Visual China
According to reports, the US Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Becerra declared on the 4th that the monkeypox outbreak is a public health emergency in the United States.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the 3rd showed that there have been 6,617 confirmed cases of monkeypox in the United States.
The report also said the decision by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services comes as the Biden administration has been criticized for a shortage of monkeypox vaccines.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on July 23 that the monkeypox outbreak has constituted a "public health emergency of international concern", which is the highest level of public health alert that WHO can currently issue.