Maryland surpasses 100 monkeypox cases, vaccines remain scarce
BALTIMORE -- Maryland has surpassed 100 confirmed cases of monkeypox, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Over 4,600 cases of monkeypox have been confirmed throughout the United States, 101 of them here in Maryland, a CDC tracker shows as of Thursday morning.
There are 21 confirmed cases in the Baltimore metro region as of Tuesday, according to Baltimore City health officials.
As monkeypox cases rise, vaccines remain scarce in the state. Baltimore City began doling out its slim supply of 200 doses this week.
The vaccines are allocated to states by the federal government from a national stockpile. According to city health officials, the Maryland Department of Health has an initial allocation of 3,363 doses of the vaccine.
The MDH has allocated 3,000 doses to local health departments, and has retained 363 doses to provide to other jurisdictions as needed, according to a statement by the Baltimore City Department of Health.
In Baltimore, officials are directing the sparse vaccine doses to those deemed most at-risk, with the "truly marginalized" at the front of the line.
The virus is spreading mostly through close, intimate contact with someone who has monkeypox, according to the CDC.
Symptoms of the virus, which are similar to those of smallpox but milder by comparison, include fever, headache, muscle aches and exhaustion, according to the CDC. Infected individuals are known to develop a rash on the face and other parts of the body.
To avoid infection, it is recommended that people avoid contact with those who have symptoms, wear a face mask around others and wash their hands frequently with soap and water or hand sanitizer.
The outbreak has touched over 70 countries and led the World Health Organization to declare a global health emergency over the weekend as authorities step up their efforts to combat the spread of the virus.