Since October 2023, an average of 200 mpox cases have been detected every month. This is still a fairly low rate of transmission, but experts worry this could be a harbinger of a larger surge in the summer when travel and socializing pick up.
Health experts monitoring the trend are calling for targeted action.
“I would encourage them to continue to provide the information so that people have the information to make decisions about their preventative health care, and also to increase their communication efforts,” Brian Hujdich, executive director of the National Coalition for LGBTQ Health, told The Hill.
The virus spread through the social networks of men who have sex with men during the summer of 2022, and it still appears to mainly be spreading through this demographic.
According to Hujdich, the continued presence of mpox in the U.S. reflects the inequitable access that different communities have to immunization. He attributed this to the fact that the mpox vaccine was only available through public health agencies up until recently, meaning factors such as distance from a clinic or supply stood in the way.
The federal government has signaled an awareness of the current trend, with an interagency initiative promoting mpox vaccination in the works.
“CDC is collaborating with federal partners and advocacy groups to think about summer opportunities to promote vaccine awareness and uptake, as well as to increase awareness of ongoing mpox risks in the United States,” a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) spokesperson told The Hill in a statement.
“The ‘Summer of Pride’ Initiative for LGBTQI+ Events started in 2023, and will continue into 2024. It is being developed out of HHS’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health. Planning is in the early stages.”
