The U.S. government does not plan to extend the public health emergency for mpox, formerly known as monkeypox virus, and Tuesday was the last day to declare it. The Department of Health and Human Services notified states in December of its plans not to extend the state of emergency. “Given the low number of cases today, HHS is not updating the emergency declaration,” officials said in a statement. “We will continue to monitor case trends closely and encourage all at-risk groups to get free vaccinations.” More than 30,000 people have been infected with the mpox virus in the United States this year as part of an outbreak, with at least 85,000 confirmed cases worldwide. However, the number of new mpox infections in the United States has since declined.
