The AIDS Healthcare Foundation ( AHF ) urges the World Health Organization not to repeat past mistakes by delaying announcements related to the COVID-19 and to immediately declare the monkeypox outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (USPPI).

COVID-19 was free to spread for months before the WHO belatedly declared it a USPPI and then a pandemic, wasting valuable time that could have allowed governments to adequately prepare and respond. Since the beginning of 2022, nine countries in West and Central Africa have become endemic areas for monkeypox, with nearly 1,600 suspected or confirmed cases and 72 deaths .

“WHO cannot continue to stand idly by; indeed, monkeypox, a disease endemic to several African countries, has spread widely, and it is a development that we do not yet fully understand. This is cause for concern and a reason to declare a global health emergency,” said Dr. Penninah Iutung, AHF Africa Bureau Chief. “When alarm bells ring, global health institutions must act to inform the public, provide prevention advice and provide recommendations to doctors and health care providers, which is still not enough. It is also regrettable that a disease endemic in the countries of the South receives international attention only when it crosses borders and affects the general populations of rich countries. »

A USPPI declaration for monkeypox would also emphasize the urgency of producing and distributing sufficient quantities of vaccines and tests on a large scale. The United States Food and Drug Administration has already approved JYNNEOS, a smallpox vaccine, as suitable for use in preventing infection with monkeypox. The European Medicines Agency is considering the same for Imvanex, the same drug marketed under a different name, according to the Health Policy Watch platform .

The AHF issued a statement calling on the WHO to declare the monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern after the global public health agency failed to do so at its meeting. from June 25th .

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), is a global non-profit organization providing cutting-edge medicines and protective services to more than 1.6 million people in 45 countries around the world, including the United States, in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, the Asia-Pacific region and Europe. We are currently the largest not-for-profit provider of HIV/AIDS medical care in the world. To learn more about AHF, visit our website: www.aidshealth.org , find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/aidshealth , or follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare and Instagram: @aidshealthcare

The text of the press release resulting from a translation should in no way be considered official. The only authentic version of the press release is that of the press release in its original language. The translation will always have to be compared with the source text, which will set a precedent.

contacts
US MEDIA CONTACT:
Ged Kenslea , Senior Director of Communications, AHF
+1.323.308.1833 office +1.323.791.5526 mobile
gedk@aidshealth.org

Denys Nazarov, Director of
Global Policy and Communications, AHF
+1 323.308.1829
denys.nazarov@ahf.org

 

Source:businesswire.com

Report Abuse