(NEXSTAR) – Massachusetts reported the U.S.’s first case of the monkeypox virus in May in a man who had recently traveled to Canada. Now, roughly a month and a half later, the 2022 outbreak has spread to 30 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A total of 460 cases of monkeypox have been confirmed in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
Of those states reporting monkeypox cases, the CDC’s data shows 10 have reported 11 or more cases since May. California has the highest case count at 95 with New York close behind at 90. Illinois and Florida have each reported just over 50 cases.
Twenty states have yet to report a case of monkeypox, including five across the Northern Plains and five in the South. The interactive map below shows the state-by-state case count with the most recent data from the CDC.
Monkeypox, clinically known as orthopox, has sickened people for decades in central and west Africa, but until May, the disease had not been known to cause significant outbreaks in multiple countries at the same time and involving people with no travel links to the continent.
It was first discovered in 1958 in monkeys being kept for research. It was found in humans 12 years later in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in a child in a rural rainforest region where smallpox had since been eradicated, the World Health Organization explains.
People with monkeypox often experience symptoms like fever, body aches and a rash; most recover within weeks without needing medical care.
More than 5,000 monkeypox cases have been reported from 51 countries worldwide that don't normally report the disease, according to the CDC.
Scientists warn anyone who is in close physical contact with someone who has monkeypox or their clothing or bedsheets is at risk of infection. Vulnerable populations like children and pregnant women are thought more likely to suffer severe disease.
Some experts and advocates are warning the Biden administration is responding too slowly to the monkeypox outbreak, leaving the U.S. at risk of losing control of the disease. David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors, said three areas in particular have been slow: "streamlining testing, making vaccines available, streamlining access to the best therapeutics."
Last week, the White House said it plans to send out thousands of vaccine doses to combat the monkeypox outbreak it faces.
The Associated Press and Nathaniel Weixel contributed to this report.