WHO launches $135-M preparedness, response plan vs mpox

The mpox outbreaks in Africa can be stopped although it will take $135 million (P7.6 billion) in funding to address the spread of the viral disease to other parts of the world, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

“The mpox outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring countries can be controlled, and can be stopped,” WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement on Monday (Tuesday in Manila). But “doing so requires a comprehensive and coordinated plan of action,” he added.

The WHO also launched its Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan covering the period from September 2024 to February 2025. It will soon make an appeal for $135 million in funding to carry out the plan with partners, including the African Union’s public health watchdog. In the meantime, the WHO has released around $1.5 million from its emergency reserve fund.

The plan, which builds on the temporary recommendations and standing recommendations issued by Ghebreyesus, focuses on implementing comprehensive surveillance, prevention, readiness and response strategies; advancing research and equitable access to medical countermeasures like diagnostic tests and vaccines; minimizing animal-to-human transmission; and empowering communities to actively participate in outbreak prevention and control.

During a hybrid briefing of WHO member states, including the Philippines, on Aug. 23, WHO experts also discussed the global strategy for a phased approach to vaccination, with the priority of stopping the outbreak in Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo where transmission is highest. DR Congo has been worst-hit with 90 percent of 2024’s reported mpox cases, with more than 16,000 suspected cases, including 575 deaths.

Online consultation

Under a national action plan on mpox, the Department of Health (DOH) will seek the help of the Philippine Dermatological Society in setting up a website through which suspected cases or those experiencing mpox symptoms can avail of online consultations instead of going to hospitals.

“When that time comes and we already have the mpox vaccine available, we will give it first to those who deal with patients with mpox. They cannot get infected because they are our first line of defense,” DOH spokesperson Assistant Secretary Albert Domingo said.

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa Herbosa earlier said the country was in the process of securing 2,000 doses of mpox vaccines from the WHO.

The Philippines has reported 12 confirmed mpox cases since July 2022. Three of the latest cases were recorded this month alone, with the patients still in quarantine and recovering from their symptoms.