U.S. health officials cautiously optimistic in view of declining new monkeypox cases

The Washington Post (8/26, A1, Diamond) reported that following “three months of surging monkeypox cases, the worldwide outbreak may have peaked, amid evidence that” individuals are “curbing risky sexual behaviors and more people are getting vaccinated against a virus that spread by close contact.” New cases in the U.S. “have fallen by about 25% in the past two weeks, from 444 cases a day on Aug. 10 to 337 on Aug. 24, according to The Washington Post’s rolling seven-day average.” But “even as public health experts cheered the slowdown in new infections, they cautioned that the virus continues to pose a risk.”

CNBC (8/26, Kimball) reported the CDC “is cautiously optimistic that the U.S. is slowing the spread of monkeypox as new cases fall in several major cities.”