A public health emergency of international concern, or global health emergency, is the highest level of alarm the WHO can convey. It’s declared for extraordinary events deemed to constitute a public health risk to countries through the international spread of disease.Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the UN’s WHO, announced the declaration in Geneva, accepting a recommendation from WHO’s emergency committee.
Tedros said there’s already been more than 14,000 reported cases, and 524 reported deaths in Africa this year, a jump from last year. He also pointed to the emergence of a new mpox strain, or clade, which he described as worrying.
Formerly known as monkeypox, mpox is a virus that occurs in animals and humans. Mpox can spread between people and causes an illness that typically manifests with a rash and resolves in a few weeks. But some cases can lead to death.
Mpox typically spreads between men who have sex with other men.
Mpox typically spreads between men who have sex with other men.