Monkeypox concern grows as virus spreads in Chicago: ‘They need to get loud about this’

“We have the tools to stop this from moving to other populations.”Nine Chicagoans have been hospitalized because of the illness, Chicago Department of Public Health spokesperson Andrew Buchanan said Monday. She, like many in the gay community, has sought monkeypox information independently, even looking to health experts on TikTok. The city reported its first monkeypox case on June 2, but officials haven’t said it was related to the conference. The disease’s rarity and current association with the gay community can make it stigmatizing, he said. “Contact tracing conducted by public health along with public awareness about prevention and post-exposure recommendations are fundamentally important in controlling the MPV outbreak,” he said.