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America Has Fumbled The Monkeypox Response
The monkeypox outbreak is not being handled effectively…
I feel I should preface this article with I’m not trying to be alarmist because I am not. However, there is a possibility that in two and a half years, monkeypox can be to America, what COVID-19 is today — widely spread and on its way to becoming endemic. While Covid-19 won’t be declared endemic to America until 2024, almost 60% of Americans have had COVID-19. Endemic means a disease that is always present in a population within a geographic area.
That means monkeypox, like COVID-19, will be here to stay.
The similarities between the two viruses thus far are striking.
Mirroring the US leading the world in COVID-19 infections early in the pandemic, now at what’s still early in the monkeypox pandemic, the US is leading the world in infections. Three states have even declared state of emergencies: California, Illinois, and New York. Only two states haven’t had residents infected yet: Wyoming and Montana.
In the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, certain states were hot spots while others didn’t have any infections. New York was a hotspot for COVID-19 infections like it is with monkeypox. There is only a matter time before monkeypox will be found in all US states and territories.
