WHO: Monkeypox "a public health emergency of international concern"

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the monkeypox outbreak a "public health emergency of international concern".

Geneva - "So far, 3,040 cases of monkeypox from 47 countries have been reported to the WHO," said WHO Secretary-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Saturday afternoon. "Since then the outbreak has continued to increase and there are now more than 16,000 reported cases from 75 countries and territories and five deaths." There is also "a clear risk of further international spread, although the risk of disruption to international traffic currently remains low," said the WHO chief.

"According to the WHO, the risk of monkeypox is moderate worldwide and in all regions except in the European region, where we estimate the risk to be high," said Ghebreyesus. "For all of these reasons, I have come to the conclusion that the global monkeypox outbreak constitutes a public health emergency of international concern," he said. An outbreak can be stopped with "the right strategies in the right groups," he said.

"While I am declaring an international health emergency, right now this is an outbreak focused on men who have sex with men, particularly those with multiple sexual partners," he said. "It is therefore imperative that all countries work closely with communities of men who have sex with men to develop and provide effective information and services, and to take action that promotes both health, protect the human rights and dignity of affected communities." However, the WHO Secretary-General warned that any form of discrimination in this context must be tackled: "Stigmatization and discrimination can be as dangerous as any virus," he said.

Source: Der Newsticker