The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
August 14, 2024

Africa Centers for Disease Control Declares a Public Health Emergency over Mpox
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has declared a
public health emergency as a virulent strain of mpox spreads rapidly
across central Africa. So far this year, the Africa CDC has logged over
15,000 suspected cases of the viral disease - formerly known as
monkeypox - which can cause fever, rashes and extremely painful lesions.
It's most often spread through close, intimate physical contact.
Scientists say the new strain of mpox is more lethal, with a fatality
rate of around 5% in adults and double that in children. Jean Kaseya is
director-general of the Africa CDC.

Dr. Jean Kaseya: "This is not just an African issue. Mpox is a global
threat, a menace that knows no boundaries, no race, no creed. It is a
virus that exploits our vulnerabilities, preying on our weakest points."

In May, the Africa CDC said it was struggling to secure any of the
millions of doses of mpox vaccine it requested from pharmaceutical
companies. The World Health Organization is meeting today to consider
whether to declare a global public health emergency from mpox.


.