The Los Angeles Post

CDPH Issues Statement on National Public Health Emergency Declaration for Monkeypox

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SACRAMENTO – California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Tomás J. Aragón, issued the following statement today on the national public health emergency declaration on the monkeypox outbreak.

“We appreciate the continued partnership and urgent action from the federal government in our ongoing efforts to slow the spread of monkeypox across California and the nation and we hope today’s action injects additional federal funding and resources into our collective response efforts. The state remains focused on slowing the spread of the virus in impacted communities, administering the limited number of vaccine doses we have, and raising awareness about prevention measures and access to treatment. Thanks to the state’s current public health infrastructure and readiness because of the COVID-19 pandemic, California is well-positioned to continue addressing this outbreak.

“Monkeypox can affect anyone; it spreads primarily by skin-to-skin contact, as well as from sharing items like clothing, bedding and towels. We remain steadfast in our support for the LGBTQ community and their families, who have been disproportionately impacted by this outbreak, and continue to reinforce that no single individual or community is to blame for the spread of any virus.”

To better protect Californians and make it easier to administer vaccines in communities hardest hit, Governor Gavin Newsom earlier this week declared a state of emergency related to the ongoing monkeypox outbreak in California.

As of August 2, 1,135 cases of probable or confirmed monkeypox have been reported in 28 local health departments.

California’s Actions in Response to the Outbreak:

  • To date, California has distributed more than 51,000 monkeypox vaccines to local public health departments. In all, the state has received more than 109,000 doses, some of which were delivered directly to Los Angeles County.

  • The state has expanded testing capacity to process more than 2,000 tests a week.

  • As of August 2, the state has distributed nearly 1,713 treatment courses and 168 IV doses of Tecovirimat (also known as TPOXX) to various locations across the state and has partnered with 71 locations statewide to provide treatment.

CDPH maintains a monkeypox homepage, including a fact sheet, and communications toolkit for the public, community organizations, health care providers, and the media.