RU.S. officials on Tuesday increased the number of individuals recommended for vaccination against monkeypox due to an increasing monkeypox epidemic.
A spokesperson for the agency stated they were providing additional monkeypox vaccinations, expanding testing and other measures to combat this outbreak.
“We will continue to take aggressive action against this virus,” said Dr. Ashish Jha, White House COVID-19 response coordinator, who has also been playing a role in how the government deals with monkeypox.
According to the administration, it is expanding the number of individuals who should be vaccinated in order to cover those who might not have known they were susceptible.
Monkeypox sufferers experience little more than fever and body aches. They also feel fatigued. Patients with more severe illnesses may experience a rash or lesions that spreads to the hands and face.
This disease has become endemic in Africa. People have contracted it from bites of rodents and small mammals. The disease is not easily spread among humans.
In the United States, and Europe, there were cases of this virus last month. Many—but not all—of those who contracted the virus had traveled internationally. Although most of the victims were men who had sex with other men, health professionals stress that anybody can contract monkeypox.
The number of cases has increased. The U.S. has identified 306. cases so far in 26 states and District of Columbia as of Tuesday. Over 4,700 additional cases were found in countries other than Africa, where the virus has been endemic.
The risk for the American people is very low, officials claim. There haven’t been any American deaths. They are taking measures to ensure that the public is aware of medical solutions to this growing issue.
It was important to increase the number of people recommended for vaccination. Vaccines are typically given to prevent people from becoming infected. Some vaccines may reduce the severity of symptoms if administered within days, weeks or even days of becoming infected.
Jynneos is a two-dose vaccine approved in the U.S. for monkeypox. This vaccine is what officials tried to use as their primary weapon against this outbreak.
Officials from the United States stated Tuesday that they will increase the Jynneos-vaccine availability. This includes allocating approximately 56,000 doses now and 240,000 over the following weeks. They also promised to add more than 1,000,000 more in the months ahead.
A second change is that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recommended vaccines should be administered after contact with people who are close to victims. Officials from the CDC said Tuesday that they will expand this recommendation to include people not yet identified, but who may be aware they have been infected.
This could include men who sex with other men in the same venue as monkeypox, or who are living in areas where monkeypox has spread.
“It’s almost like we’re expanding the definition of who a contact might be,” said the CDC’s Jennifer McQuiston. If people have been to a party or other place where monkeypox has been known to spread “we recommend they come in for a vaccine,” she said.
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