Illinois and California declare states of emergency over monkeypox outbreak

California and Illinois have declared states of emergency over rising monkeypox infections, joining New York in urgent measures to deal with the outbreak.

California Governor Gavin Newsom said the declaration will help get more vaccines and increase efforts to prevent and treat the disease.

"We will continue to work with the federal government to secure more vaccines, raise awareness about risk reduction, and support the LGBTQ community in their fight against stigmatization," Newsom said in a statement.

Monkeypox is spread through prolonged and close skin-to-skin contact, which can include hugging and kissing, as well as through the sharing of towels and clothing.

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[Monkeypox has the potential to become a new sexually transmitted disease]

In Illinois, Governor JB Pritzker assured in a statement that his declaration will also give the Department of Public Health all the power of the State to distribute vaccines and inform the public about the virus.

The disease "requires the full mobilization of all available public health resources to prevent spread," it added.

People stand in long lines to receive the monkeypox vaccine at San Francisco General Hospital, on July 12, 2022.AP

The state of New York and the city of San Francisco declared a state of emergency last Thursday.

California has received more than 61,000 doses of vaccine and has distributed more than 25,000.

According to the report issued on Monday.

the state has

[The "nightmare" of this New York resident infected with monkeypox illustrates how ill-prepared the health system is (again)]

Nearly 150,000 New York residents may be at risk of exposure to monkeypox

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This Monday, the White House reported that Bob Fenton and Demetre Daskalakis will be announced on Tuesday as national monkeypox coordinator and deputy, respectively.

Fenton helped lead the nation's mass vaccination effort for COVID-19 as acting administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Daskalakis is director of the division of HIV prevention at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The World Health Organization declared monkeypox a global emergency more than a week ago.

In the United States there are 5,000 cases of the disease, most of them in New York.