Monkeypox Global Health Emergency 2022
In March, the WHO declared monkeypox a Global Health Emergency. But the World Health Organization’s emergency committee rejected that declaration. They cited concerns over mistreatment of men who have sex with monkeys. As of May 2016, monkeypox has been identified in over a dozen countries in central and western Africa. Of those, six countries were affected. In those countries, four out of every six cases were in men.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is weighing whether to declare the outbreak a Global Public Health Emergency. The agency considers five factors when determining whether to declare a situation a public health emergency: the risk to human life, the extent of the outbreak, and potential interference with international transportation. In this case, it was judged to be an “extraordinary” situation and would require international action to stop the virus’s spread. The World Health Organization’s decision to declare a Monkeypox Global Health Emergency was a difficult one and was not unanimous.
The WHO has reported cases in 75 countries this year. In wealthy countries, testing capacity has been slow to roll out. Poorer countries lack testing capacity. This means that information is scanty and poses a substantial challenge to designing interventions. Ultimately, the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a Global Public Health Emergency for the year 2022. So, how do we address the threat? By making an effort to protect the vulnerable, we can prevent the spread of the disease.
While it is important to make vaccine available, monkeypox vaccination remains in short supply in many countries. The disease is not a life-threatening illness, but the disease can be painful for some. Luckily, most cases recover with no medical treatment. But that does not mean that the disease isn’t worth the global effort to combat it. The World Health Organization has declared monkeypox a Global Health Emergency 2022 and has requested donations to combat the epidemic.
Vaccines aren’t a panacea. Although monkeypox is not new, supplies are running low. In the U.S., 191,000 doses of vaccine have been shipped to state and city health departments. The federal government has ordered seven million doses of the vaccine. In the next few weeks, the vaccine will reach the U.S. as well as other countries. So far, however, there is no vaccine for monkeypox.
The latest outbreak of monkeypox has been atypical. In some cases, a rash develops first, without any flu-like symptoms. Others develop a localized rash on the anus or genital region. According to the WHO and CDC, the rash is easily confused with other common sexually transmitted diseases. That’s why it’s critical to contain this outbreak as soon as possible.
While monkeypox has been found in animals, it is most commonly spread by rodents. While the disease is endemic in Africa, it does occasionally occur in non-endemic areas. In the European region, cases of monkeypox were reported in the early May. However, this outbreak’s origin is still unclear. A WHO advisory panel met this week to review the situation. They will review the situation if new outbreaks are reported.
Until now, the number of reported cases of monkeypox has been small, but growing. It has now spread to more than 75 countries worldwide, including new parts of Africa. The disease has also spread to Australia and North and South America. In the United States, the disease has been endemic for at least two centuries, but there have been no reports of deaths in the U.S. and Europe.
The vaccine for monkeypox is a highly effective cure, but the demand for it has outstripped the vaccine supply, leading to long lines in New York City. Bavarian Nordic, a Danish biotechnology company, is the sole manufacturer of monkeypox vaccine. They have about 5 million doses of the vaccine for the rest of the world, and the capacity to fill up to 40 million liquid and eight million freeze dried doses each year.
