Headlines

Mpox continues to be transmitted globally, marked by the ongoing accumulation of cases in Africa and the 1,203 cases reported by PAHO in the Americas between the start of 2026 and July 31. This week, however, no mpox Clade II was detected in wastewater in the United States. To secure long-term access for future outbreaks, the WHO launched a global mpox vaccine stockpile initiative on August 27.

The Full Story

9/03/2026 — Mpox continues to spread globally. In response, the WHO has launched a new global initiative to improve access to mpox vaccines, and Hasanuddin University in Indonesia suggests combining four interventions to provide a cost-effective approach to outbreak control.

Between January 1 and July 31, 2026, 1,203 cases have been confirmed in 11 countries in the Americas region. Nine countries have now reported a cumulative 77 cases of mpox Clade Ib. Most cases are linked to international travel. In global comparison, the Americas region accounts for the largest proportion of cases (39.7%), followed by the African region (37.3%) and the European region (17.9%). Within the Americas, the cumulative data since 2022 shows that the United States has reported the most cases (27,929), followed by Mexico (5,068). 

According to the WHO mpox global trends, between July and August, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has reported the most cases(+433), a mix of Clades Ia, Ib, and II. Madagascar (+290) has reported the second-greatest number of cases, but these consist only of Clade Ib cases. 

As of September 3, Sindh, a southeastern region of Pakistan, reported three new infections and one suspected case. While the Clades have not been identified, these three cases bring the total number of confirmed cases in Sindh to 39.

The WHO launched a global initiative to establish a stockpile of mpox vaccines on August 27 to create a long-term mechanism to ensure countries have access to vaccines for future mpox outbreaks. The initiative builds on the Access and Allocation Mechanism established in 2024 during the last mpox Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

A study from Hasanuddin University in Indonesia has suggested that combining four interventions— vaccination, treatment, quarantine, and educational campaigns — could reduce infections and provide a cost-effective approach to outbreak control. The combined strategies reduced infections by about 97.85% and were identified as the most cost-effective strategy.

The Africa CDC has not provided updated case numbers for the past five weeks, and the WHO is now updating its global trend data every two weeks. The team will continue to track cases as new data are published.

Mpox in the United States

In the United States, the San Francisco Department of Health has recommended that individuals attending the Folsom Street Fair receive mpox vaccination in advance, as more than 70 mpox cases have been reported in San Francisco this year.

According to WastewaterSCAN, mpox Clade II was not detected in wastewater in the United States from August 28 to September 3. The CDC’s National Wastewater Surveillance System (NWSS), which has broader coverage of the US but is not as up-to-date as WastewaterSCAN, detected Clade II mpox in Portage and Summit Counties, Ohio, for the second week in a row, between August 16 and 22. Clade II mpox has continued to circulate in the US, with 1,700 to 2,800 cases reported annually from 2023 to 2025. So far in 2026, there have been 867 mpox cases reported in the US, with no documented deaths. This includes both Clade II and Clade Ib cases, with the majority of cases being Clade II, causing less severe illness and a mortality rate between <1% and 4%.

Clade Ib cases in the US total 27 since late 2024, with the most recent case being reported two weeks ago in California, but there has been no documented transmission within the US and no deaths in 2026. Before this, the most recent cases were six associated with travel (including in New York, Arizona, Connecticut, and Missouri) and a San Francisco Clade Ib case reported in April 2026. None of these cases have been epidemiologically linked to the others. To date, sustained community transmission of Clade Ib has not been detected in the US. Despite a wastewater detection of the deadlier mpox Clade Ib in Cobb County, Georgia, in March, and clinical detections in New York and Missouri in March, California in April, and Connecticut in May, mpox Clade Ib has not been detected in wastewater in any of those states or nationally in May, June, or July.