Clinics across the country will begin providing vaccinations against monkeypox to anyone who may have been exposed to the virus, federal health officials announced Tuesday.
So far, immunization has been provided only to people with known exposures.
Officials said in a news briefing that the state would receive a safer and new monkeypox vaccine called Jynneos from federal stockpiles, based on the number of cases and the proportion of the state’s population at risk of serious illness.
State health authorities may also require the supply of older vaccines developed for smallpox. It is also believed to protect against monkeypox.
The Department of Health and Human Services will immediately provide 56,000 doses of the Jynneos vaccine, with an additional 240,000 doses in the coming weeks. An additional 750,000 doses are expected to be available in the summer, with a total of 1.6 million doses expected to be available by the end of this year.
“Currently, there are some restrictions on the supply of this vaccine, so current vaccine strategies prioritize making the vaccine available to those in urgent need.” Said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
An old smallpox vaccine called ACAM2000 has severe side effects such as the death of immunocompromised people, pregnant women and the elderly.
The new vaccination program has received swift criticism from experts that the campaign is too small to impact. Researchers warned that the longer it takes to contain the monkeypox outbreak, the more likely it is that the virus will spread to the United States, especially among men who have sex with men.
“Many of us are concerned that the windows to eradicate monkeypox are closed,” said Dr. Serene Gowner, an infectious disease expert and public health editor at Kaiser Health News. I am.
“If we don’t start vaccination more quickly and extensively, it will be very difficult to contain it,” she said. Ideally, monkeypox testing and vaccines could have been provided at LGBTQ pride events across the country to reach men at high risk of being infected with the virus, Dr. Gounder added.
Some experts said the plan was unfair to men at risk of not having access to the Jynneos vaccine, especially those who are infected with HIV and cannot safely get the old smallpox vaccine.
“It’s not enough to meet the needs,” said Elizabeth Finley, STD Director’s National Union Communications Director. “In addition, without better testing capabilities, strategies based on contact with positive cases will fail.”
It’s not clear what could be the exposure, she added.
Many clinicians are worried about the side effects and scarring of old smallpox vaccines, as well as false information and vaccine hesitation that they can incite, Finley said. “We’ve told clinicians that there’s no way in hell for them to give someone ACAM2000,” she said.
The Jynneos vaccine, on the other hand, has never been used on this scale, and federal health officials have stated that they should be aware of unexpected side effects.
Authorities said Tuesday that they had provided more than 9,000 Jynneos vaccines and 300 courses of antiviral treatment to 32 jurisdictions across the country so far.
European Union Similar plan, Sends 5,300 out of 100,000 Jynneos doses to Spain. Spain has the most cases, followed by Portugal, Germany and Belgium. Other member countries receive doses in July and August.
The number of monkeypox cases is increasing rapidly in many European countries and the United States.
What you need to know about monkeypox virus
What is monkeypox? Monkeypox is a virus that is endemic in parts of Central and West Africa. Similar to smallpox, but less serious. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it was discovered in 1958 after an outbreak occurred in monkeys kept for research.
As of June 28, there were 306 cases in 27 states and the District of Columbia, an increase from 156 cases a week ago. According to Dr. Warrensky, the CDC has activated an emergency operations center to better monitor and respond to outbreaks.
The reported numbers are likely to be underestimated, said Dr. Jabalma, director of the Cornell Center for Pandemic Prevention and Response. “It’s pretty obvious to me, and many others think the epidemic is much larger than the official number of cases suggests,” he said.
Given the increasing numbers, the available doses may not be sufficient to meet the demand. The Washington Department of Health provided an appointment for 300 monkeypox vaccinations on Monday. The slot was full within 15 minutes.
In New York City, which identified 55 cases of monkeypox as of Tuesday, 1,000 doses of Jynneos vaccine were available. The city’s health department has begun vaccination at a single clinic in Chelsea. In Chelsea, our clients are mostly wealthy white men who have sex with men.
The city provided the first dose at June 23 noon.. Within 2 hours, officials publication The clinic was no longer available for walk-in and had reservations until June 27th.As of Tuesday, the city Still waiting To make more vaccine doses available.
Keletso Makofane, a social network epidemiologist at the FXB Health and Human Rights Center at Harvard University, said:
“All of this uncertainty does not help foster the trust we need to have,” said Dr. Makofane.
Some experts also said the location was problematic and it was fairer to provide the vaccine in clinics frequently visited by untreated HIV and black men with limited access to medical care.
