The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned of an imminent threat of the monkeypox outbreak due to a shortage of vaccine supply as the virus continues to catch the country off guard.
Over the past month, the number of people infected with monkeypox in New York City has jumped more than 30 fold, from 10 to 336. The figure is expected to underscore the incidence rate, considering that many cases in the region have gone undiagnosed.
Monkeypox Vaccine Shortage
During that period, Mayor Eric Adams was busy with celebrating Pride, holding a party at Gracie mansion, and reminding the world just how deeply New York embraces the L.G.B.T.Q. community. This comes as many other parts of the country seem bent on a regression to the pre-Stonewall era.
Adams said that in New York, residents were happy to say that they were gay, without fearing for their lives. However, the lack of public information about monkeypox, along with the difficulties around access to the vaccine, have shown how the professed love and support coming from the left can feel rhetorical, as per the New York Times.
This week, monkeypox cases in the United States have risen to more than 1,400 and federal officials reported on Friday that they expect the number to continue to rise amid expanded testing, continued community transmission, and a current shortage of vaccines.
The update by federal officials comes as they face growing criticism over their handling of the outbreak, and experts fear that it may already be too late to contain the infection. Overall, the multinational monkeypox outbreak has totaled nearly 13,000 cases, with the largest outbreaks in Spain, Germany, and the UK.
According to Ars Technica, the director of the CDC, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, said that they anticipate an increase in monkeypox cases in the coming weeks. She laid out three reasons why health experts were expecting an upcoming rise.
Virus Outbreak
First, the agency just recently streamlined the reporting process for states, which first began reporting cases in May. Second, there is often a three-week incubation period between exposures and symptoms, and officials expect to start seeing the cases from transmission events early in the U.S. outbreak.
Third, the CDC has expanded testing capacity recently, adding some commonly used commercial labs, such as Labcorp and Quest Diagnostics. The expansion of testing capacity boosted maximum tests from 6,000 per week to 70,000. It also made it easier for clinicians to order tests and will likely speed up the turnaround for results.
The tests involve a swab of the painful lesions that are characteristics of the disease, as Walensky said there are no approved tests that can confirm orthopox another way. Currently, the outbreak is affecting gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men.
Out of 700 patients who provided demographic information, the vast majority identified as men who have sex with other men, said Walensky. The tens of thousands of confirmed cases worldwide have been reported across 55 countries, CNBC reported.
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