California officials confirm 1st US case of severe mpox strain with no travel history
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(NEW YORK) — The first U.S. case of a more severe strain of mpox without any recent travel history has been identified in California.
Health officials said this week that the case was confirmed in a Long Beach resident. The patient required hospitalization and is now isolating and recovering at home.
No other identifying details were provided about the patient, including name, age or sex.
While this is the seventh case of the more severe strain confirmed in the U.S this year, it is the first without known travel, according to local officials.
Officials say the risk to the general public is low and the health department is conducting an investigation, including working to identify the patient’s potential sources of exposure.
“We are taking this very seriously and ensuring our community and health care partners remain vigilant so we can prevent any more cases,” Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson said in a press release. “This underscores the importance of continued surveillance, early response and vaccination.”
There are two types of the virus that cause mpox: clade I and clade II, with clade roughly meaning they are descended from a common ancestor organism. Clade I has historically been associated with severe illness and death, and is endemic to parts of central and western Africa, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Clade II was responsible for a large outbreak that peaked in summer 2022, leading to more than 100,000 cases in 122 countries, including more than 30,000 cases in the U.S.
The less severe strain in the U.S. has continued circulating at low levels and has remained relatively stable.
Parts of Africa have been dealing with sustained person-to-person spread of the more severe strain of mpox. All six previously confirmed cases of the more severe strain in the U.S. have been among people who had recently traveled to areas associated with the outbreak in central and eastern Africa, according to the CDC.
In November 2024, California reported the first domestic case of the more severe strain in a traveler from Africa who experienced mild illness.
People with mpox, which was formerly known as monkeypox, often get a rash that can be located on hands, feet, chest, face, mouth or near the genitals, the CDC said.
Most people with mpox typically recover within two to four weeks without specific treatments.
Currently, the JYNNEOS vaccine, a two-dose vaccine approved by the Food and Drug Administration to prevent smallpox and mpox, is the only vaccine being used in the U.S.
The JYNNEOS vaccine is recommended for adults at high risk for mpox, which includes people who are gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men and have recent or upcoming risk factors like multiple sexual partners, intimate contact with someone who may have mpox, or sex at commercial venues.
ABC News’ Mary Kekatos contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — A large new study conducted in Spain and Italy found that beta blockers, drugs often used to slow the heart rate and lower blood pressure, did not provide clear benefits for heart attack patients whose hearts were still functioning well.
The results of the study, known as REBOOT, were published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Saturday and presented during the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2025 in Madrid, Spain.
The REBOOT trial enrolled more than 8,400 patients recovering from a heart attack whose heart function was above 40% and assigned them to either take a beta blocker or no beta blocker within two weeks of leaving the hospital.
Over the course of approximately 3.7 years, there was no significant difference when it came to rates of death from any cause, repeat heart attacks or hospitalization for heart failure between the two groups, according to the study.
In a “subanalysis” of the study, published in the European Heart Journal, researchers specifically looked at outcomes involving the approximately 1,600 women from the original REBOOT trial and isolated their results.
In this case, beta blockers were associated with an increased risk of death from all causes for these women, compared to women who were not taking beta blockers. In contrast, no excess risk was associated with beta blocker use in men.
However, the authors advised that the results should be interpreted with caution as the women enrolled in REBOOT trial were generally older, sicker, and received less treatment for heart attacks than men.
Second study points to benefits of beta blockers Results from another clinical trial called BETAMI-DANBLOCK — also published Saturday in the New England Journal of Medicine — appeared to yield yet another finding about beta-blocker use after a heart attack.
Results from this trial of more than 5,000 adults diagnosed with a heart attack and either mildly decreased or intact heart function demonstrated that those treated with beta blockers had fewer new heart attacks in the 3 and 1/2-year study period compared to those who did not take beta blockers after their initial heart attack.
Notably, there was no difference in rates of death, heart failure, stroke or other major heart issues between the two groups.
“The major driver was a reduction in non-fatal heart attack at follow-up,” said Dr. Gregg Fonarow, professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, in an interview with ABC News.
While it is important to acknowledge that the BETAMI-DANBLOCK study found a potential benefit in beta blocker use, it had some limitations. This was a smaller-scale study that combined two clinical trials into one because separately they were not able to enroll enough patients. Different rules for who could join each of the studies in each country may have skewed the results, as well.
“REBOOT was a cleaner study in terms of protocol and inclusion criteria,” said Dr. Steven Pfau, professor of cardiovascular medicine and interventional cardiologist at Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut.
Notably, REBOOT challenges over 40 years of standardized practice, which calls for patients admitted to the hospital for a heart attack to be started on beta blockers before or shortly after they are discharged.
Cardiologists’ methods for treating heart attacks and opening blockages in the coronary arteries in a timely fashion have improved drastically over the past 10-20 years, experts say. That’s why, in an age of improved medical therapies and procedural interventions for heart attacks, such as better-performing coronary artery stents, it may be time to rethink the long-standing guidance on beta-blocker use, according to some experts.
“Beta blockers were developed at a time before routine reperfusion therapy for acute heart attacks and the evolution of more potent medications, and care has really evolved,” said Fonarow.
Pfau said that neither study makes a compelling case for beta blockers versus no beta blockers for this select group of patients.
“If beta blockers do have an effect, it is probably small, given the other therapies we have,” he said. “It fits the discussion for both studies that, with the way we currently practice, beta blockers potentially add very little to outcomes after a heart attack for patients with preserved heart function and no other pre-existing reason to be on a beta blocker.”
If patients can take beta blockers safely, they should keep using them for now, Fonarow advised. But he also called for more studies to understand which patients benefit the most from this type of medication.
Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo. (Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
(TALLAHASSEE, Fla.) — Florida is moving to “end all vaccine mandates” in the state, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo announced at a press conference on Wednesday.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — Tens of thousands of children and families could be affected by dozens of Head Start programs potentially closing if the federal government shutdown extends past Nov. 1.
About 134 programs across 41 states and Puerto Rico will see their operational funding cease on Saturday, affecting nearly 65,000 kids, or 10% of all Head Start children, according to the National Head Start Association (NHSA).
Florida, Georgia, Missouri and Ohio may see the most impacts, potentially affecting more than 24,000 children and more than 7,500 staff members, NHSA data shows.
Head Start is a federal program run by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that provides early childhood education, health, nutrition and family support services to low-income children and families.
Programs shutting down could mean that children under age 6 could lose access to preschool education, health services and referrals. Families could lose access to affordable childcare that allows parents to work, attend school or undergo job training.
“We are concerned that the longer a government shutdown runs, the more likely it is that Head Start programs might be faced with potential closures and having deep impacts on children and families that we serve,” Tommy Sheridan, deputy director of NHSA, told ABC News. “The longer the shutdown goes, the more that number will increase and, at the end of the day, children and families should never be put at risk because of political gridlock. However, that’s exactly what’s happening right now.”
Programs struggle to find funding Sheridan said not all of the 134 programs affected will close in November. Some are reaching out to state and local leaders and some are asking private organizations for funding, which may cover costs for a short period of time.
He said there are 1,600 programs across the U.S. so, while a majority of Head Start programs will not be affected after Nov. 1, it is still a substantial number that will either be struggling to remain open or may have to close.
An HHS spokesperson told ABC News that Democrats are to blame for the government shutdown and that, when the shuthown is over, the HHS’ Office of Head Start will work to expedite grant awards.
Central Kentucky Community Action Council Head Start and Early Head Start (CKCAC), which serves 400 children in nine centers across six counties, will lose access to an $8 million federal grant on Nov. 1, Bryan Conover, executive director of CKCAC, told ABC News.
Although CKCAC’s Head Start policy council affirmed unanimously to allow the group to pursue a line of credit for about $1 million with a local bank, it will only allow operations to be maintained until Nov. 21.
“All 400 of those families could be put in a situation where, if we have to close our doors, they’re going to choose whether or not to take care of their kids or work,” Conover said. “And so there really is multiple ripples of pain that ceasing operations would cause, and we’re hoping beyond hope that this shutdown ends very soon, that we don’t have to go through those painful conversations.”
Conover said if the shutdown extends past Nov. 21, “it’s going to make for some very unfortunate Thanksgiving situations.”
“If we get to Nov. 22 and we don’t have funding available, and we have to close our doors and SNAP may not be in place yet, we’re going to have vulnerable families missing out on nutrition for their kids, let alone education, let alone therapy, let alone the other supports they need to be able to be kindergarten-ready and let alone the impacts on the families who are going to have to make choices to potentially work or stay home to provide child care,” he continued.
The Ohio Head Start Association said seven providers serving more than 3,700 kids are at risk of closing because their federal funds will be exhausted on Nov. 1. The association said closures could force 940 staff members out of work.
“Every day the shutdown continues, Ohio children and families are paying the price,” said Julie Stone, executive director of the OHSA said in a statement. “Head Start is not a political issue — it’s a lifeline. Congress must act now to restore funding, keep classrooms open, and protect the stability of families, the staff who serve them, and communities.”
Closures could affect childhood development Dr. Lindsey Burghardt, chief science officer at the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University, said there could be negative effects on development from Head Start programs ending so suddenly.
She said these services help support children’s healthy physical and mental development through education, nutrition, having consistently available and responsible caregivers and having safe and clean places to play and learn.
Head Start programs may be the only way by which children receive nutritious meals, get health screenings or receive early intervention for developmental delays and special education.
“When you disrupt it, especially when you destabilize these services suddenly, I think you have the potential to disrupt healthy brain development, to derail the healthy development of all these other organ systems,” Burghardt told ABC News.
“And that’s important, because it can disrupt mental and physical health in childhood, but actually, really importantly, can disrupt health and well-being across those children’s life spans and have really long-lasting developmental implications,” she added.
Burghardt said the longer or larger disruption to these services, the more potential to negatively impact a child that could span throughout adolescence and decades later, when they’re an adult.
This can include poor academic and cognitive function as well as greater behavioral problems, Burghardt said.
The NHSA said research has shown Head Start programs have short-term and long-term impact, including less chronic absenteeism in middle school, improved high school graduation rates, increased higher education enrollment and completion and a decreased reliance on public assistance.
Sheridan said families, including parents and caregivers, may also feel negative impacts from Head Start programs shutting down.
“Families that are eligible for Head Start often work multiple jobs,” he said. “They might be in college or community college or a technical college or are in job training programs. … So the families that are in Head Start, they’re doing everything that they can to try to better their situation and their child’s situation. They count on Head Start to be there so that they can navigate whatever they need to in order to be able to provide for their families.”
Sheridan went on, “Without Head Start, many parents will have no affordable child care option. They may be forced to leave their jobs. They may … reduce the hours that they might be working, not attend class, different things like that, horrible decisions that families do not want to have to make … and it’s going to be incredibly destabilizing and challenging.”
