Policy Statement
As Monkeypox Cases Surge Worldwide, W.H.O Issues Global Emergency; Advocates Call For Emergency Funding to Respond to Crisis in US
Statement from NCSD calls for the U.S. to follow suit by declaring public health emergency and providing $100 million in emergency funds
As Monkeypox Cases Surge Worldwide, W.H.O Issues Global Emergency; Advocates Call For Emergency Funding to Respond to Crisis in US
Statement from David C. Harvey, Executive Director of National Coalition of STD Directors
For Immediate Release: July 23, 2022
Contact: Steph Reichin | SReichin@SKDKnick.com| 617.549.3745
Washington, DC – Today, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a global emergency, the highest alert in response to Monkeypox, as global cases surged to more than 16,000 in 75 countries. In the United States caseloads have tripled in the past three weeks, and there are cases identified in more than 40 states around the country. The National Coalition of STD Directors (NCSD) has been calling for a comprehensive national response to this outbreak, including federal guidance on how to respond as well as emergency funding for STD Clinics to respond to this crisis. David C. Harvey, Executive Director of NCSD released the following statement in response:
“While the administration has taken steps to address the monkeypox outbreak including accelerating the distribution of vaccines and allocating critical funding for monkeypox research, it quite simply is not enough.
“Cities and states around the country have been left to respond to this outbreak on their own, making impossible decisions about how and when to allocate vaccines, provide therapeutics that are needed to recover, and educate the public.
“The public health sector and specifically STD clinics are on the front lines responding to this outbreak, but don’t have the adequate resources to protect and treat patients, while still facing an out of control STD epidemic.
“The U.S. should follow the WHO’s lead and declare this a public health emergency, and the administration must allocate $100M in critical emergency funding to help local health departments and STD clinics get this crisis under control. There’s no more time to waste. We’ve seen before what happens when crises like these are put on the backburner, now is the time to act – and we urge HHS to act quickly,” said David C. Harvey, Executive Director of the National Coalition of STD Directors.
