New York City declared monkeypox a public health emergency on Saturday.
New York Mayor Eric Adams and City Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan made the announcement in a joint statement as a total of 1,383 cases of monkeypox have been identified in New York State.
“New York City is currently the epicenter of the outbreak, and we estimate that approximately 150,000 New Yorkers may be at risk of exposure to monkeypox,” the statement said.
This declaration will authorize the Department of Health to issue emergency ordinances according to the municipal health code and to amend its articles to help slow the progression of the epidemic.
