“Smallpox Vaccine Recommended for Exposure to Monkeypox”

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is suggesting the smallpox vaccination for people who may have come into contact with pet prairie dogs infected with monkeypox. The vaccine was found to be 85 percent effective in preventing monkeypox in individuals exposed to the disease. While no fatalities have occurred in the United States, the illness has about a 10 percent death rate. A prohibition of U.S. prairie dog sales and an embargo on African rodents has been instituted by the Department of Health and Human Services to control the monkeypox outbreak

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