These are the states with the highest monkeypox cases relative to population

Case rates are high in Washington, D.C., New York, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Florida, Massachusetts and California.

by Chia-Yi Hou | Jul. 25, 2022

A vial of smallpox/monkeypox vaccine is seen during a vaccination event at the Pride Center on July 12, 2022 in Wilton Manors, Florida. The center is offering the free smallpox/monkeypox vaccinations from the Florida Department of Health in Broward County as South Florida leads the state in the number of people infected. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Story at a glance

Monkeypox cases have been detected in nearly all 50 states in the U.S.

The virus is transmitted through close contact with an infected person.

Washington, D.C., New York and Georgia have the highest case rates by population.

In the U.S., there have been a total of 2,891 monkeypox cases reported, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It has been detected in 44 states and the District of Columbia. Some of the states with the highest number of cases include New York, California, Illinois and Florida. Below we will break down some of the numbers according to total population of each state or territory.

Washington, D.C., has the highest case rate by population. With 110 cases and a population of less than 690,000, monkeypox has been detected in about 0.016 percent of residents.

Next highest is New York state, which leads the overall number of cases with 900 reported cases. And with a population of more than 20 million, that makes the case rate by population about 0.0045 percent.

Georgia follows with monkeypox detected in about 0.002 percent of the population, with a total of 211 cases and a population of 10.7 million.

The next several states:

Illinois: 0.0019 percent (238 cases, about 12.8 million people)

Maryland: 0.0011 percent (71 cases, about 6.2 million people)

Florida: 0.0011 percent (247 cases, about 21.5 million people)

Massachusetts: 0.0011 percent (79 cases, about 7 million people)

California: 0.0009 percent (356 cases, about 39.5 million people)

Government officials in the U.S. are deploying smallpox vaccines that are able to help prevent illness from the monkeypox virus. Disease from the virus can last 2 to 4 weeks, and case fatality ratio is about 3 to 6 percent, according to the World Health Organization.