Clip shows WHO official saying mpox 'no longer' emergency in 2023, not 2024 | Fact check
The claim: Video shows WHO official saying mpox is ‘no longer a global health emergency’ in August 2024
An Aug. 26 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) includes a video of World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus saying in part that he’s “pleased to declare that the mpox is no longer a global health emergency.”
The post's caption reads, “After only just declaring a Global Health Emergency – The WHO Director General Tedros – has reversed that decision last year, now it’s reversed again. Isn’t it incredible that within a matter of days, the World can move in & out of Global Health Emergency.”
Another version of the claim spread widely on X, formerly Twitter.
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Our rating: False
The video dates back to May 2023, when the declaration of mpox as a global health emergency was lifted. The WHO declared mpox a global health emergency for the second time in August 2024, and the declaration remained in place as of Aug. 29.
No WHO announcements reversing August decision
Mpox was first declared a public health emergency of international concern in July 2022. The clip in the Facebook post dates back to May 2023, when Tedros announced the designation no longer applied to the disease.
The WHO also confirmed the clip is from 2023 in an Aug. 30 X post, which was in response to a user who shared it. It called the user's characterization of the clip "inaccurate and misleading," according to Google's translation of the Spanish-language post.
The WHO declared mpox a global public health emergency for a second time on Aug. 14. That decision came after an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo that spread to other countries, Paste BN reported.
The agency referred to the disease as such in the weeks following the declaration, and there are no news releases from the WHO saying the declaration has been reversed as of Aug. 30.
Fact check: Video shows line for Tim Walz rally, not mpox tests
Paste BN has debunked an array of claims about mpox, including false assertions that the WHO ordered nations to prepare for “mega lockdowns” because of the disease, that former President Donald Trump warned mpox will be used as an excuse for electoral fraud and lockdowns and that mpox is a reaction to COVID-19 vaccines.
Paste BN reached out to users who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Reuters also debunked the claim.
Our fact-check sources:
- WHO, Aug. 30, X post
- WHO, accessed Aug. 30, News
- WHO, Aug. 28, WHO Director-General's remarks at the 74th session of the Regional Committee for Africa – 28 August 2024
- WHO, Aug. 26, Global strategic preparedness and response plan launched by WHO to contain mpox outbreak
- WHO (YouTube), May 15, 2023, Mpox no longer represents a public health emergency of international concern
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