First doses of mpox vaccine from the United States arrive in Congo

Authorities in Congo say 50,000 doses of the mpox vaccine from the United States have arrived in the country. The arrival on Tuesday came a week after the first batch arrived from the European Union. Around 250,000 doses overall have arrived in Congo so far. That's a fraction of the 3 million doses authorities have said are needed to end the mpox outbreaks in the country which is the epicenter of the global health emergency. There have been 5,549 confirmed mpox cases across the continent since the start of 2024 with 643 associated deaths. That represents a sharp escalation in both infections and fatalities compared to previous years.