After meeting with the Minister of Health, Catherine Vautrin, who also presented her resignation, Attal made the decision to raise the alert for a viral disease that can be fatal and is transmitted by physical contact with infected people and animals or contaminated materials.

According to Attal, whose resignation and that of his Cabinet was accepted a month ago by President Emmanuel Macron, the measures include information and recommendations to people traveling to or returning from “risk areas.”

On Wednesday, the World Health Organization declared MPOX a public health emergency of international concern, a disease that had been mainly spread across Africa, but with the first cases confirmed in Asia and Europe in the last few hours.

The European Union further urged its 27 Member States to increase vigilance, following the detection of an infection in Sweden with ape smallpox, the common symptoms of which are skin lesions that can last from two to four weeks, accompanied by fever, headaches and muscle pain, lack of energy and swollen lymph nodes.

Attal disclosed on social networks that after being hit by MPOX in 2022, France has adopted prevention and confrontation actions, including the inoculation of over 150,000 vaccine doses.

In this regard, he asserted that the disease was contained, with the number of cases on France dropping from 4,975 in 2022 to 52 in 2023 and 107 this year.

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