Overview
- Health officials confirmed late Wednesday that a state resident contracted Clade I mpox while traveling internationally, marking Arizona's first confirmed case of that strain.
- The Arizona Department of Health Services and local health departments are identifying and monitoring people who may have been exposed and report no evidence of local transmission linked to the patient.
- State health data show a summer rise in mpox infections, with 34 reported cases in Arizona as of July 21, 2026, a total that includes the Clade I infection.
- ADHS urges testing and clinical management for symptomatic people and recommends the JYNNEOS vaccine, which is most effective within four days of exposure and may still reduce illness if given within 14 days.
- Clade I has been associated with higher rates of severe illness historically compared with Clade II, but public health officials and experts say two doses of JYNNEOS are expected to protect against both clades and officials will focus surveillance on people at higher risk of severe disease.