As monkeypox cases rise in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis said he won't be declaring a state of emergency over the disease.
"Do not listen to their nonsense ... I'm so sick of politicians, and we saw this with COVID, trying to sow fear into the population," he said in a news conference near Orlando on Wednesday.
Currently, there are more than 500 cases in Florida, which is more than double from last week. South Florida has a bulk of new cases — 384 between Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties.
"We’re not going back to Fauci in the 80's when he was trying to tell families they were going to catch AIDs watching TV together, and so anything we deal with from a public health perspective ... we are not doing fear," DeSantis said.
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DeSantis compared monkeypox public education campaigns to the likes of COVID.
"You see some of these states declaring states of emergency, they're gonna abuse those powers to restrict your freedom — I guarantee to you that’s what will happen," DeSantis said.
Right now, monkeypox is spreading fast among men who have sex with men. But there are concerns that as school is set to start, transmission could dramatically increase among other populations.
While monkeypox is not deadly, it is spread to anyone through close, personal, and often skin-to-skin contact, including direct contact with rash, scabs, or bodily fluids.
There is a vaccine, but supply is short.
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