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Monkeypox: New York city declares health emergency

Reuters
31 Jul 2022 11:39:01 | Update: 31 Jul 2022 11:47:30
Monkeypox: New York city declares health emergency
A staff member of the Westchester Medical Center prepares a monkeypox vaccine in a drive-through monkeypox vaccination point at the Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, New York, US, July 28, 2022 — Reuters Photo

The governor of the State of New York Kathy Hochul late on Friday declared an emergency in the state over the continued spread of monkeypox.

"I am declaring a State Disaster Emergency to strengthen our ongoing efforts to confront the monkeypox outbreak," Hochul tweeted. 

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She added that more than one in four monkeypox cases in the United States are in New York, also having a disproportionate impact on at-risk groups.

As of July 29, New York state had a total of 1,383 confirmed orthopoxvirus/monkeypox cases, according to New York Department of Health's website.

Earlier on Friday, Brazil and Spain reported the first monkeypox-related deaths outside Africa. 

The World Health Organisation last week declared a global health emergency, its highest level of alert, over the monkeypox outbreak. 

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