Covid-19 has continuously impacted the world throughout the past couple years. But recently, a new emerging virus has surfaced to cause some tension in the world. Monkeypox is a viral zoonotic (can pass from animals to humans) disease that occurs primarily in tropical rainforest areas of central and west Africa. Monkeypox got its name in 1958, when it was detected in several laboratory apes, and human cases were first identified in the 1970s in Congo. But recently, with more evolutions and adaptations to antibiotics, the virus has been able to reoccur multiple times, spreading across the globe. Currently, there are around 70,000 cases around the world, and 26,000 in the United States. If you get infected with Monkeypox, it usually takes between 5 and 21 days for the first symptoms to appear. The first symptoms of Monkeypox include high temperature and headaches, but transition into rashes throughout the body. The death rate is only around 3-6%, and symptoms usually last for about a few weeks, but the virus is definitely not to be understated.
With the virus gaining steam, and even President Joe Biden saying that “if it were to spread, it would be consequential.” shows the reality of the situation. Such a virus is not to be taken lightly, and Monkeypox might even threaten economic comeback plans, adding one more factor in risk calculations about gatherings. Rising Covid cases had already caused some companies to push back their deadlines for return-to-office plans. Although Monkeypox is a low-risk type of virus that already has a vaccine plan in place, the spread is very rapid and there is no true, safe-treatment plan. If there is a highly concentrated area with infected members, the U.S. government will get involved immediately and impose restrictions.
While Congress has invested heavily in public health during COVID-19, federal funding has fallen into a familiar boom-or-bust cycle over the past few decades. In a crisis, the federal government sends money to address a specific crisis, but once the emergency ends, the money runs out and local and state agencies limp along with shoestring budgets until the next crisis. Federal public health funding is often directed toward specific diseases, which prevents state and local health officials from using it to meet the need of the moment as it arises. And the next thing will always come. While the virus is much less of a concern Covid-19 is, the magnitude of the effects are hard to quantify.
