The US government has declared a national health emergency due to the outbreak of monkeypox. The move would, among other things, release federal funds to fight the virus. “We are ready to take our response to this virus to the next level and urge every American to take Monkey Box seriously and take responsibility,” US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said yesterday.
Considering the rapid spread of monkey flu, the WHO announced the highest alert level almost two weeks ago. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called the outbreak an “emergency of international concern”. The international spread of infectious disease is extraordinary. So far, it has basically been limited to six African countries.
Increase testing capacity to 80,000 per week
According to the Department of Health, there are now about 6,600 cases in the United States. Becerra said about 1.1 million vaccine doses will be available to people in the country. He announced an increase in testing capacity to 80,000 per week. Individual US states and major cities such as New York State and San Francisco, California have previously declared states of emergency and asked for federal assistance.
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