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White House COVID-19 adviser Dr. Ashish Jha has assured Americans that monkeypox poses a “fairly small” threat to the general population, despite the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring an emergency.
“Not one American has died from monkeypox in this outbreak,” Jha said during an appearance on “Fox News Sunday.” “I don’t know globally — I think it’s a very small number — but zero Americans have died from monkeypox, so the risk to the broader population is pretty low.”
The WHO has declared that the monkeypox virus is now a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus acknowledged on Saturday that the level of transmission previously did not meet the criteria, but has since continued to rise.
More than 75 countries and territories have already reported more than 16,000 cases, with five confirmed deaths.
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WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 22: (LR) White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and COVID-19 Response Coordinator Ashish Jha speak to reporters during a press briefing at the White House on July 22, 2022 in Washington, DC. District of Columbia. On Thursday morning, the White House press office announced that US President Joe Biden has tested positive for COVID-19. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Jha said he agreed with the call because many countries lack the necessary resources to deal with an outbreak while still struggling with issues related to COVID-19, but stressed that the United States is prepared for the virus and can handle it while keeping the risk to Americans low.
“I support it,” he said. “I think Dr. Tedros made the right decision. We have monkeypox in many countries around the world, many of them don’t – they don’t manage to deal with it.”
“Here in the United States, we have just over 2,000 cases,” he continued. “We’ve greatly increased testing, greatly increased vaccinations.”
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FILE – This 1997 image provided by the CDC during an investigation of an outbreak of monkeypox that occurred in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), formerly Zaire, depicts the dorsal surfaces of the hands of a patient with monkeypox who exhibited the appearance of a characteristic rash during its recovery stage. The World Health Organization is convening its emergency committee on Thursday, July 21, 2022, to consider for the second time in weeks whether the expanding monkeypox epidemic should be declared a global emergency. (CDC via AP, file) (CDC via AP, file)
Jha advised that the US would delay declaring its own monkeypox emergency, explaining that any such decision would depend on “the facts on the ground” and what the declaration would allow health officials and services to do.
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Jha also focused in the past few days on President Biden’s COVID-19 infection, assuring the public that White House medical staff and advisers had been transparent throughout the process — including the revelation that officials had identified and tracked 17 individuals who have had contact with the president and may be infected.
President Biden makes remarks virtually during a meeting with his economic team to discuss lowering gas prices in the South Court Auditorium of the Executive Office Building on July 22, 2022. (Demetrius Freeman/Washington Post via Getty Images)
“None of them have tested positive,” Jha said. “Apparently they all continue to follow CDC protocols for masking and testing, but to date no one that I know of has tested positive.”
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Jha highlighted the fact that Biden was given two shots and two booster shots, which he said resulted in him dealing with a “relatively mild” infection.
Fox News’ Julia Musto contributed to this report.
Peter Aitken is a Fox News Digital reporter with a focus on national and global news.
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