Maryland Up To 9 Monkeypox Cases, Health Department Confirms
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Maryland is up to nine cases of monkeypox after two more were confirmed since Sunday, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A spokesperson for the Maryland Department of Health confirmed the CDC's data and said the state agency is continuing to monitor cases.
"Extensive contact tracing has been conducted for all presumed cases and individuals identified as having close contact with the case patients have been offered the opportunity to receive a vaccination through the appropriate provider, in accordance with the CDC recommendations," said Chase Cook, the agency's deputy director of media relations.
The White House announced on June 28 the release of a limited number of monkeypox vaccines to high-risk individuals.
"MDH stands prepared to receive those vaccines and is working with key partners in the state to deploy them," Cook said.
The virus is in the same family as Smallpox but is considered less severe. Even so, the symptoms can still be extreme – like rashes and lesions all over the body and flu-like symptoms.
State officials advise residents to stay alert for these symptoms, especially if they have traveled to central or west African countries or another country where cases have been confirmed, been in close contact with a person with confirmed or suspected monkeypox, or had close or intimate in-person contact with people in a social network experiencing monkeypox activity.
