Health care providers, administrators, and clinical laboratory directors should report confirmed or suspect cases immediately to their Local Health Department by telephone.

Smallpox is a serious, sometimes fatal disease caused by a virus that spreads from person to person through direct contact. Symptoms may include high fever, headache, body aches, followed by a rash that progresses to pus-filled blisters that scab and fall off leaving a pitted scar. A majority of people with smallpox recover, but death may occur in up to 30% of cases. Many survivors have permanent scars and some are left blind. In 1980, due to vaccination programs, smallpox was declared eliminated from the world, and there have been no cases since 1977. There is the concern that virus saved in government laboratories around the world, or potentially created using genetic manipulation, could be used as a biological weapon.

• Frequently Asked Questions [English] [Spanish]

• Guidelines for the Management of a Suspect Case of Smallpox in Medical Care Settings
• Smallpox Vaccine for Hospital Health Care Response Teams
• Normal Primary Vaccination
• Preventing Contact Transmission

• Pre-Event Smallpox Vaccination Clinic Planning Manual
• Coordinating a Pre-Event Smallpox Vaccination Clinic
• NJ Smallpox Vaccination Preparedness: Vaccine Education caution: graphic and explicit medical photos of adults and children with smallpox
• Smallpox Vaccination for Response Teams: The Decision is Yours
• Identification of Smallpox Public Health Response Teams
• Smallpox Vaccination Plan
  • Appendix D: Active hospital-based and enhanced passive surveillance
  • Appendix E: CDC Smallpox Response Plan and Guidelines (Version 3.0), Guide A
  • Attachment C: Evaluating Patients for Smallpox: ACUTE, GENERALIZED, VESICULAR OR PUSTULAR RASH ILLNESS PROTOCOL
  • Notification Protocol for Suspected Bioterrorism Incident
• New Jersey’s Preparedness Smallpox Vaccination Plan Overview