The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Wednesday it plans to make the monkeypox disease a nationally notifiable condition.
The designation, which is scheduled to go into effect on Aug. 1, updates requirements for states to provide data on cases to the agency. According to the CDC, this will enable the agency to monitor and respond to monkeypox even after the current outbreak has subsided.
According to the CDC, over 5,000 monkeypox cases were reported in the United States as of July 29.
States must report confirmed or likely cases of monkeypox within 24 hours. Even before a case’s investigation was completed, the CDC asked for data to be shared.
State health departments are currently not required to provide the federal government with standardized data on monkeypox.
The World Health Organization has declared the disease, which causes flu-like symptoms and skin lesions, a worldwide health emergency.
Reuters contributed to this report.
