WHO declares mpox a global health emergency

An outbreak of the viral disease formerly known as monkeypox continues to spread in Africa

Sign on mpox at Cancun airport in Mexico
The good news is there's a vaccine for the viral disease. The bad news is there isn't enough vaccine to stop the spread in Africa.
(Image credit: Geography Photos / Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

What happened

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared an mpox outbreak in Africa a "public health emergency of international concern." The highly infectious strain of mpox, formerly called monkeypox, has jumped from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to a dozen other African countries.

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Rafi Schwartz, The Week US

Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.