U.S. CDC issues alert as mpox outbreak in Central, East Africa leads to new cases in the U.S.
The CDC issued a health advisory concerning Clade I mpox cases appearing in the U.S. from Central Africa-associated travel.
Clade I of the mpox virus is more severe and has higher mortality rates compared to Clade II, as seen in past outbreaks.
Health professionals are urged to evaluate patients with recent travel history to affected areas and provide preventive measures.
The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued an official Health Alert Network (HAN) advisory in response to a growing mpox outbreak in Central Africa, particularly the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The outbreak has led to a small number of travel-associated mpox cases diagnosed in the United States since 2024.
This outbreak involves Clade I of the mpox virus, a variant historically associated with more severe illness and a higher case fatality rate than Clade II, which was responsible for the 2022–2023 global outbreak.
The Clade I of the mpox virus is also known as the Congo Basin clade and is one of two types of mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) viruses.
Laboratory testing has confirmed that the virus detected in the current U.S. cases is genetically consistent with strains circulating in Central Africa and distinct from the Clade II strain previously seen in the United States.
Disease contained in the U.S.
As of May 2025, there is no evidence of sustained local transmission in the U.S., but the CDC is urging healthcare providers to remain alert, especially when evaluating patients with recent trave l to the DRC or neighboring countries.
According to the CDC, the outbreak in the DRC shows signs of sustained human-to-human transmission.
Mpox cases have been reported among men, women, and children, suggesting a possible shift in transmission dynamics compared to previous outbreaks that largely affected men who have sex with men.
Vaccination remains a key preventive measure. The CDC supports the continued use of the JYNNEOS vaccine, which is effective against both Clade I and Clade II strains.
However, the agency notes that uptake of the vaccine has declined since the height of the previous outbreak. The HAN advisory encourages health departments to identify individuals at risk and ensure they have access to testing, treatment, and vaccination.
To support early detection and reduce the risk of further spread, the CDC recommends that clinicians:
Consider mpox in the differential diagnosis of patients with compatible symptoms and relevant travel history.
Promptly report suspected cases to local or state public health authorities.
Collect specimens for confirmatory testing through the CDC or designated public health laboratories.
US CDC issues warning
No travel restrictions have been issued at this time, but travelers to the DRC are advised to avoid close contact with sick individuals, wild animals, and materials contaminated with bodily fluids.
The CDC continues to monitor the situation and will provide updated guidance as more information becomes available.
For now, health officials are emphasizing early recognition and public health response, given that Clade I mpox presents more serious health risks and has resulted in fatalities in affected countries abroad.
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Chicago Tribune
an hour ago
- Chicago Tribune
With COVID-19 cases on the rise, shifting federal guidelines spark widespread confusion over vaccine eligibility
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CNN
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CNN
2 hours ago
- CNN
CDC leaders call shooting targeted and deliberate as rattled staff say they felt like ‘sitting ducks'
Federal agencies VaccinesFacebookTweetLink Follow In a large and hastily arranged Zoom call on Saturday, about 800 rattled staffers with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tried to make sense of the trauma they endured just a day earlier when a gunman opened fire on the agency's buildings from across the street. They had been winding down for the weekend when more than 40 bullets smashed through their office windows, whizzing just over their cubicle walls and petrifying staffers in at least four buildings. But Friday's violent episode is the latest unsettling new chapter to what has been a turbulent period for the CDC. While authorities have not announced a motive for the shooting, law enforcement sources say the suspect may have targeted the CDC over health concerns he blamed on the Covid-19 vaccine. One of the world's leading health agencies, the CDC is tasked with protecting the health of Americans. But it has come under fire during the second Trump administration as conspiracy theories continue to plague the vaccine credited with halting the spread of the global pandemic. The attack on the CDC offices had been targeted and deliberate, CDC leaders told staff on the call. Staffers might hear their work was targeted as a possible motivation for the shooter, leadership added. CDC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Debra Houry acknowledged the terror staffers experienced whether they were in the building or not, saying leaders were 'mad this happened.' Leaders told staffers, many of whom work in the agency's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, the attack was carried out by a shooter who had been reaching out for mental health assistance for weeks before the incident but had not made any threats ahead of time, according to two sources who spoke on the condition they not be named. It's unclear who the suspect, identified as 30-year-old Patrick Joseph White, was reaching out to. The investigation into what led to the shooting is ongoing. The shooting began just before 5 p.m. at the Emory Point CVS drugstore on Clifton Road, directly across from the main entrance to the CDC. The gunman – wearing what appeared to be a surgical mask and armed with two handguns, a rifle, a shotgun and two backpacks filled with ammo – fired on at least four CDC buildings. There were at least 40 bullet holes in two buildings, as well as a few in a third building, CDC leaders said on the call Saturday. The buildings house much of the non-lab work at CDC. 'This was not stray bullets,' one leader said on the call, sharing updates from the authorities. CNN obtained copies of staff notes from the meeting, which were shared in a large employee group chat. CDC employees said on Saturday's call they felt like 'sitting ducks.' Photos viewed by CNN taken from inside one CDC building depict bullet holes in windows and shattered glass on the floor. The images show rounds of ammunition flew just above a line of office cubicles where employees sit. As the gunman fired at the CDC complex, DeKalb County police officer David Rose pulled up. The shooter turned his aim from the CDC complex to the officer, according to a law enforcement source. Rose, 33, was shot and later died at a hospital. A married father of two, with another on the way, Rose would have made one year on the job next month. After a tense lockdown stretching into the night, the gunman was struck by gunfire and found dead on the second floor of the CVS store. Police could not say if the gunfire came from officers or the gunman himself. In the CDC offices, employees said the situation could have been much worse. 'It's a miracle no one was killed here,' one CDC employee told CNN. After speaking with family members of the suspect, police are operating under the hypothesis he was either sick or believed he was sick and blamed the illness on the Covid-19 vaccine, a law enforcement official told CNN. The shooting occurred the same week US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. – a longtime critic of Covid vaccinations, with a history of spreading vaccine misinformation – announced the cancellation of a half-billion dollars in investments in mRNA projects. HHS said it would cancel federal funding for nearly two dozen mRNA vaccine projects. 'We are deeply saddened by the tragic shooting at CDC's Atlanta campus that took the life of officer David Rose,' Kennedy said Saturday. 'No one should face violence while working to protect the health of others.' 'Public health workers show up every day with purpose — even in moments of grief and uncertainty,' the health secretary continued. 'We honor their service. We stand with them. And we remain united in our mission to protect and improve the health of every American.' When asked on the Saturday call if she had spoken to Kennedy about his plan to address the shooting, CDC Director Dr. Susan Monarez responded they've been in contact with his office, according to staff notes obtained by CNN. Monarez was also asked what the agency planned to do to address disinformation, but agency leaders on the call did not directly respond. Monarez informed CDC staff via email they will work remotely on Monday while a 'security assessment' is conducted. Employee assistance personnel were made available to workers, she said. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said CDC employees have 'had a tough go of it in the past year,' referencing the 'uncertainty' around CDC staff's employment. The agency has lost nearly a quarter of its staff since January. The Trump administration's proposed budget for the fiscal year 2026 would slash the agency's funding by more than half. Under the proposed reorganization, the CDC would lose additional programs. Some would be transferred to a new Administration for a Healthy America, while others - such as the National Center for Chronic Disease and Health Promotion - would be eliminated entirely. 'My heart goes out to you,' Dickens said. 'We are with you. We stand with you, and we're doing everything we can to make sure that we bring resolve to the situation.' CNN's Kathleen Magramo and Ray Sanchez contributed to this report.
