Monkeypox Confirmed in Congo’s Ebola-Hit Bunia as Health Officials Brace for More Cases

Just in time to mark the start of the Halloween season, comes news that Monkeypox is teaming up with Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

This week, health officials are confirming a case of Monkeypox in Bunia, in the DRC’s Ituri province. This region is already responding to a major Ebola outbreak.

• The epidemic caused by the Ebola outbreak was declared on May 15 in Ituri province, where Bunia is located, and has infected 7,890 people and killed 3,799, according to government data published on Thursday.
• Mpox is a viral disease that ⁠causes fever and skin lesions and spreads through close physical contact.
• Congo declared an end to mpox as a national public health emergency in April after a three-year outbreak that resulted in more than 34,000 confirmed cases nationwide. Authorities cautioned at the time that the virus had not been eradicated and could resurge.
• The latest case involves a 21-year-old woman who was admitted to hospital on Thursday with lesions across her body consistent with mpox, hospital director Davin Ambitapio Musungufu ‌said. ⁠She tested positive on Friday, he and two health officials told Reuters.

Reports indicate that five other suspected Monkeypox cases in ⁠Bunia are currently under investigation

This week, the U.S. announced it would send another $267 million to help contain the Ebola outbreak in the DRC. The money is intended for treatment units, safe-burial teams, protective and medical supplies, surveillance, and contact tracing. This brings the total amount our country has provided for this response to $886 million.