NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Mayor Eric Adams on Monday declared a state of emergency in New York City over the burgeoning monkeypox outbreak.
LISTEN TO 1010 WINS
The local state of emergency allows the mayor to suspend local laws and enact rules as necessary to “protect the well-being and health of all New Yorkers,” the mayor’s office said.
The state of emergency declaration is in addition to a separate public health declaration of emergency issued on Saturday by the Health Department that allows the city’s health commissioner, Dr. Ashwin Vasan, to issue orders amending provisions of the city health code “to protect public health and slow the spread” of the virus.
Adams released a statement saying the city’s more than 1,200 cases represent a quarter of all reported cases in the U.S. and that “we are continuing to see the numbers rise.”
“This order will bolster our existing efforts to educate, vaccinate, test and treat as many New Yorkers as possible and ensure a whole-of-government response to this outbreak,” the mayor said.
The city will continue to partner with the federal and state governments “with the urgency required to keep people safe,” Adams vowed. He said the order was yet “another tool” in this effort.
The state of emergency declaration had been anticipated, as Adams said last week he was working with Vasan to determine if it was a necessary step in containing the outbreak. Officials said as many as 150,000 city residents could be at risk of infection.
The state of emergency order will remain in effect for at least 30 days or until it is rescinded.
On Friday, Gov. Kathy Hochul issued an executive order declaring a state of disaster emergency in New York state over the outbreak.
The order empowers public health officials and healthcare professionals to take additional steps to distribute vaccines and control the virus. It also expands who is eligible to administer monkeypox vaccines to include EMS, pharmacists and midwives.
New York state is in the process of receiving another 110,000 monkeypox vaccine doses from the federal government, with 80,000 of those doses headed for the five boroughs.
New York, and especially New York City, has become the epicenter of the outbreak in the U.S.
As of Friday, there were at least 1,345 reported cases in New York state, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There are at least 5,189 cases nationwide.
On Monday, New York City's monkeypox database identified 1,472 cases in the five boroughs.
Officials have said the actual number of cases is likely much higher.
New York City's declaration came just days after San Francisco's mayor announced a state of emergency.
On July 23, the World Health Organization declared monkeypox a global health emergency.
Related
Related
Related
