With no monkeypox cases yet reported, Carroll County Health Department is focusing on preparation efforts

Though none of the 219 monkeypox cases reported as of this week in Maryland were in Carroll County, the county’s health department is getting ready, if and when the virus arrives here, a health official said Wednesday. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, monkeypox is caused by infection with the monkeypox virus, which is part of the same family of viruses as the virus that causes smallpox. Monkeypox symptoms are similar to smallpox symptoms, but milder, and monkeypox is rarely fatal, the CDC stated.