A monkeypox virus genomic surveillance pilot began in King County, Washington, USA, during the 2022 outbreak. Genomic surveillance proved critical in determining local versus international exposure of a case where no known exposures were identified by interview, illustrating the value of genomics in case investigation and public health practice.
Keywords: Mpox; United States; Washington; communicable disease control; disease outbreaks; emerging communicable diseases; genomics; molecular epidemiology; monkeypox virus; public health practice; public health surveillance; viruses; whole-genome sequencing; zoonoses.