US is beefing up mpox testing, vaccine access against new strain

7/9/2024 7:31

        The United States has beefed up testing and surveillance for a new strain of mpox and has ensured that vaccines are readily available at local pharmacies
        and community health centers, senior administration officials said in a briefing on Friday.
        
        No cases of the more transmissible strain of the virus have been confirmed in the United States, but experts are preparing for that possibility following a World Health Organization declaration last month of a global public health emergency, the second such declaration in two years.
        
        The new strain, called clade 1b, has caused a major surge in cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has spilled over to several neighboring countries. Travel-related cases have been confirmed in both Sweden and Thailand.
        
        In a briefing on Friday, senior U.S. administration officials said any American doctor can now order an mpox test, which can be processed through national laboratory chains. Positive tests that are not the older strain of mpox will be sent to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for confirmation.