The Government today gazetted the inclusion of monkeypox as a statutorily notifiable infectious disease and launched a preparedness and response plan which will be activated promptly if monkeypox emerges or causes an outbreak in Hong Kong.

Noting that Hong Kong has not recorded any confirmed monkeypox human infection cases so far, the Centre for Health Protection said such cases have been reported in some endemic and non-endemic countries recently and the World Health Organization (WHO) has urged governments around the world to be well-prepared.

To enhance Hong Kong's surveillance and response capability on the disease, the Government published a notice in the gazette to include monkeypox as a scheduled infectious disease under the Prevention & Control of Disease Ordinance (Cap 599) and identify it as a specified disease under the Prevention & Control of Disease Regulation (Cap 599A).

According to the regulation, medical practitioners are required to notify the Department of Health if they suspect any monkeypox case.

As for the preparedness and response plan, it adopts a three-tier response level of Alert, Serious and Emergency which will be activated based on risk assessment and the health impact brought by monkeypox on the community.

It also defines the corresponding command structures at each response level and provides the framework of a response system for agreed and co-ordinated efforts amongst different government departments and organisations so as to reduce the morbidity and mortality of the Hong Kong population due to monkeypox.

The Government will continue to maintain close contact with the WHO and carefully monitor monkeypox infection cases recorded overseas as well as the organisation's latest recommendations.

People who have symptoms of monkeypox, including fever, severe headache, muscle pain, swollen lymph nodes, mouth ulcers and a rash, should seek medical attention as soon as possible.