INDIANAPOLIS—On Wednesday, Senate Assistant Democratic Leader Eddie Melton (D-Gary) sent a letter to Dr. Kristina Box requesting information about the steps being taken to address the Monkeypox outbreak in our state, which has been declared a public health emergency by the World Health Organization. As of the end of July, there had been 45 reported cases of Monkeypox in Indiana, including in Gary where one of the first cases was reported.  

Senator Melton released the following statement:

“We’re noticing an increase in Monkeypox cases across the globe, and I’m urging our Health Department to be proactive as this disease begins to spread. Our neighboring state, Illinois, has already declared a state of emergency, which will allow their Department of Health to begin coordinating efforts to prevent and treat the disease as efficiently as possible. I urge our state to begin taking proactive steps as well so we can get out ahead of this health issue before there’s a further spike in cases.”

“One of the first cases of Monkeypox in our state was discovered in Gary,” Sen. Melton said. “For the safety of my community, which is still experiencing the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, I wanted to make sure our top health officials were approaching this impending crisis proactively. I will be sure to keep those in my community updated on information from Dr. Box’s office as I hear back. Until then, I encourage residents to remain diligent and look out for news from our state and federal health officials as they continue to monitor the situation and the impact on our communities.”

The strain of Monkeypox currently spreading across the globe has been identified as the West African strain, which the Center for Disease Control has reported is rarely fatal.