August 2, 2022 - California is declaring a state emergency in response to the ongoing monkeypox outbreak, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday evening. It is the second state in the country to do so, with Illinois making a similar announcement just hours before.

The move follows a Friday briefing where California Department of Public Health director Dr. Tomas Aragon said the state was continuing to review information. The state has over 800 confirmed cases, according to a dashboard from the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control updated Monday morning.

The dashboard indicates the U.S. currently has around 5,800 confirmed monkeypox cases.

“California is working urgently across all levels of government to slow the spread of monkeypox, leveraging our robust testing, contact tracing and community partnerships strengthened during the pandemic to ensure that those most at risk are our focus for vaccines, treatment and outreach,” Newsom said in a Monday press release.

Because monkeypox can also be transmitted via respiratory droplets in rare cases, wearing a mask or high-quality respirator like a N95, KN95 or KF94 offers a mode of dual protection against both viruses.

Read more here. 

Source: <https://www.capradio.org/articles/2022/08/01/california-declares-state-of-emergency-as-monkeypox-outbreak-grows/>