WHO Seeks $135M In Funding To Fight Mpox: Outbreak 'Can Be Controlled, And Can Be Stopped'

The World Health Organization announced a new strategic preparedness and response plan Monday in the fight against mpox, two weeks after declaring a public health emergency on the outbreak.

What Happened: The WHO announced a new plan in its fight against the outbreak of mpox. The plan comes as several companies are ramping up efforts to launch or increase output of mpox vaccines and treatment options.

The plan calls for $135 million in funding for the WHO response and for member states and partners. Among the partners are communities, researchers and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Funding will help with surveillance, prevention, readiness and the response to fight outbreaks of mpox, the WHO said.

The WHO said it will take part in strategic vaccination efforts to focus on high-risk individuals, which includes health care workers and those with close contact to recent cases.

"The mpox outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring countries can be controlled, and can be stopped," WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

"Doing so requires a comprehensive and coordinated plan of action between international agencies and national and local partners, civil society, researchers and manufacturers, and our Member States."

A virtual scientific conference will be held on Aug. 29 and Aug 30 to share mpox research and outbreak control goals from the WHO, Africa CDC and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Read Also: Diagnostic Giants Labcorp, Roche To Ramp Up Testing Capacity Amid Global Concerns Over New Mpox Strain

Why It's Important: The six-month plan is viewed as the critical step in stopping mpox outbreaks from spreading further or faster.

On Monday, Germany announced it will donate 100,000 mpox vaccine doses from its stockpile to help with the outbreak prevention, as reported by Reuters. Germany will keep a minimum stock of mpox vaccines, the report said.

There have been 3,326 confirmed cases of mpox in Africa in 2024, with 590 deaths across 12 countries, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, as reported by The Hill. A total of 17,979 suspected mpox cases have been reported.

Shares of companies that have mpox vaccines or treatments have been highly volatile over the last two weeks. The list includes Bavarian Nordic BVNRY and Emergent Biosolutions EBS, both of which have WHO-recommended vaccines

GeoVax Labs GOVX and SIGA Technologies SIGA have also been highly volatile. GeoVax has a mpox vaccine in clinical development. SIGA Technologies has Tpoxx, which is a treatment for mpox.

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