CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Howard Brown Health, which primarily serves the LGBTQ+ community in Chicago, has reported seven new cases of mpox — formerly known as Monkeypox — since mid-April.
Officials added that results from some tests are still pending. In the three months prior there was just one case.
Dr. Patrick Gibbons, Howard Brown’s Chief Medical Director, said in a statement: “We urge sexually active members of our community to receive the mpox vaccine.”
“The more people who get vaccinated, the better protected the LGBTQ+ community will be from another outbreak,” he said.
Mpox spreads through close physical contact, and officials said symptoms include fever and a rash.
In 2022, two people died from mpox in Chicago.
The newly reported cases represent the highest number of infections in the city since November 2022 — and Howard Brown Health officials wrote that it's the highest weekly new case rate in the country.
Vaccines can be provided at any one of Howard Brown’s nine medical clinics, and officials wrote that people can also receive care at the walk-in clinics located in Hyde Park, Englewood, and Uptown.
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