By Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
November 21, 2021
The freezer center was instantly protected and personnel followed basic protocols for informing CDC of such a possible discovery. The vials were sent out safely to CDC for screening on November 18 to identify what they consisted of. Nobody was exposed to the contents of the vials.
Lab screening at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today showed that recently found vials marked as “smallpox” include vaccinia, the virus used in smallpox vaccine. There is no proof that the vials include variola virus, the cause of smallpox. CDC is in close contact with state and local health officials, police, and the World Health Organization about these findings.
On November 15, 2021, the U.S. Government was notified of the report of a small number of undamaged, frozen vials labeled “smallpox” found by a lab employee while cleaning out a freezer in a center that conducts vaccine research in Pennsylvania.
