UK Upgrades The Monkeypox Threat

The United Kingdom has upgraded the monkeypox threat to a “notifiable” disease. That means, starting June 8th, doctors in England will have to notify local authorities when they detect a patient suspected to have the virus.

The announcement comes as Britain has reported over 300 monkeypox cases. On Monday, 77 new cases of the disease were detected across the UK, with a vast majority of them identified in England.

“This new legislation will support us and our health partners to swiftly identify, treat, and control the disease,” the monkeypox incident director at UKHSA, Wendi Shepherd, said in a statement according to a report by RT.  “It also supports us with the swift collection and analysis of data which enables us to detect possible outbreaks of the disease and trace close contacts rapidly, whilst offering vaccinations where appropriate to limit onward transmission.”

Worldwide, the number of monkeypox cases has already surpassed 1,000, with the disease detected in some 29 non-endemic countries. Those aren’t exactly terrifying numbers, especially considering what you have to do to contract this disease. But the ruling classes continue to refuse to let a good “crisis” that they manufacture go to waste.

On Monday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stepped up its monkeypox guidance as well, upgrading its alert to level 2 and urging the public to “practice enhanced precautions” against the disease.

CDC Issues “Alert Level 2” For Monkeypox

The CDC hilariously lists several things that travelers should avoid. One is “Close contact with sick people, including those with skin lesions or genital lesions.” So, if you are in the habit of touching other people’s genital lesions while you are traveling, stop it. Of course, this is probably something that you should avoid doing at any time, even when you are not traveling and even when there isn’t a monkeypox outbreak.

The ruling class in the United States has also already ordered a cache of smallpox vaccines to administer to those “in close contact” with the monkeypox, while the UK announces that monkeypox-related NHS testing and treatment will be free for everyone under this new guidance. The measure is expected to encourage people experiencing symptoms of the virus to come forward, including foreigners who would otherwise have to pay for treatment.