Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Texas Resident With Monkeypox Had Recently Returned From Africa
USA Today: Texas Resident Hospitalized With Rare Monkeypox Diagnosis 18 Years After Outbreak In US
A Texas resident who recently traveled from Africa has been hospitalized after contracting what the Texas Department of State Health Services believes is the first case of monkeypox in the state, a diagnosis that comes 18 years after the nation's last outbreak of the rare disease. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other heath officials are working to trace the person's contacts to help prevent another outbreak of the illness. But health officials say the risk to the public is low, especially because COVID-19 precautions on the person's flights probably kept the virus from spreading. (Segarra, 7/16)
Dallas Morning News: Dallas Resident Has Texas’ First-Ever Case Of Monkeypox, But It’s ‘Not A Reason For Alarm’
Local officials said that the lone case of monkeypox posed little risk to the public at large. “While rare, this case is not a reason for alarm and we do not expect any threat to the general public,” Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a written statement. ... Officials noted that because travelers are required to wear masks on flights and in airports to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, the potential for the transmission of monkeypox was diminished. (Steele, 7/16)
And a man in China has died of the rare Monkey B virus, which is different from monkeypox —
The Washington Post: Chinese Veterinarian Dies From Rare Monkey B Virus
A man in China has died after contracting a rare infectious disease from primates, known as the Monkey B virus, Chinese health officials revealed in a report Saturday. The victim, a 53-year-old veterinarian based in Beijing, was the first documented human case of the virus in China. According to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the man worked in a research institute that specialized in nonhuman primate breeding and dissected two dead monkeys in March. He experienced nausea, vomiting and fever a month later, and died May 27. His blood and saliva samples were sent to the center in April, where researchers found evidence of the Monkey B virus. Two of his close contacts, a male doctor and a female nurse, tested negative for the virus, officials said. (Tan, 7/19)
