The new strain of M-pox – formerly known as Monkeypox – hasn’t been reported in the U.S. yet. That’s according to Dr. Steven Stack, Kentucky’s commissioner for public health. He said despite it being isolated to Africa, people in his line of work are concerned, as the COVID pandemic showed how swiftly diseases can spread around the world.
“It's important because all of us are interconnected and that these diseases, these microbes, are able to spread among us, and so we all have a vested interest in looking out for each other and making sure that these diseases don't spread rampantly and cause a lot of human harm.”
Stack said Clade 1 of M-pox is presently confined to Africa, while Clade 2 made its way to the U.S. two years ago and has infected 111 Kentuckians, none of whom died. He said Clade 2 has mostly been confined to men who have sex with other men, and people with many anonymous sexual partners.
“So for the vast majority of Americans, this is not a particularly notable risk. For those who are at risk, however, they are encouraged and urged to go get the JYNNEOS vaccine because that will help dramatically reduce your risk of serious illness and disease.”
The state Cabinet for Health and Family Services reports more than 7-thousand doses of the JYNNEOS vaccine have been administered in Kentucky.
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