China will monitor people and goods entering the country for the smallpox virus over the next six months, the customs administration said in a statement Friday, after the WHO declared the virus a global health emergency again.
“People from countries with smallpox outbreaks who have been in contact with smallpox cases or who have symptoms (…) should take the initiative to declare themselves to customs,” the statement said. The WHO has changed the name of monkeypox to mpox.
Vehicles, containers and goods coming from areas where smallpox cases have been reported must be disinfected, the statement added.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday declared smallpox a global public health emergency for the second time in two years, following an outbreak of the viral infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo that spread to neighboring countries.
Last year, China’s National Health Commission announced that smallpox would be managed as a Category B infectious disease, allowing authorities to take emergency measures such as restricting gatherings, suspending work and school or sealing off areas if a disease outbreak occurs.
Category B infectious diseases currently include COVID-19, AIDS and SARS.
Smallpox can be spread through close contact. It is usually mild but can be fatal in rare cases. It causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions on the body.
