San Francisco and New York State declare monkeypox a public health emergency

The city of San Francisco and New York state declared public health emergencies on Thursday amid the growing outbreak of monkeypox.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed said the risk of monkeypox to the general population remains low, but declaring a public health emergency would allow the city to mobilize resources and expedite contingency plans to respond. to the increase in the number of cases. Monkeypox infections in the city have nearly doubled in the past week, she noted.

“We know this virus affects everyone equally – but we also know that members of our LGBTQ community are at higher risk right now,” Breed said in a Medium post. “The most critical need right now is for more vaccines. The federal government distributes the vaccine to state health departments, and then the California Department of Public Health allocates it to counties, such as San Francisco. We have no control over the amount of vaccines we receive.

“San Francisco needs more support and we need more action,” she added. “That’s why we are declaring a local emergency.”

In New York, which has had 1,251 cases of monkeypox so far, Health Commissioner Mary Bassett said it poses an imminent threat to public health across the state.

“This statement means that local health departments engaged in response and prevention activities will be able to access additional state reimbursement, after other federal and state funding sources are maximized, to protect all New -Yorkers and ultimately limit the spread of monkeypox in our communities,” she said in a statement.

The statements came after the World Health Organization declared the growing outbreak of monkeypox an “extraordinary” event labeled a global emergency, saying it had spread to more than 70 countries. The disease is mainly spread by close physical contact with an infected person, and almost all known cases to date have been in men who have sex with men.

Dr. Anthony Fauci stressed that the United States should work to reduce the stigma surrounding monkeypox, noting that it can circulate in any community.

Monkeypox has been confirmed in almost every state, but the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted that more than 40% of cases so far have occurred in New York and California. No deaths have been attributed to the outbreak, but some people are reporting severe pain after being infected.

The Biden administration has considered declaring monkeypox a public health emergency and may bring in a White House coordinator to oversee the federal government’s response. The Food and Drug Administration said this week that it has authorized an additional 800,000 doses of vaccines for distribution nationwide, dramatically expanding supplies to vulnerable communities. But those numbers still worry some public health experts who fear there may not be enough to meet high demand.

“We will weigh any decision to declare a public health emergency based on the response we see across the country,” Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said Thursday. “The bottom line is: we need to stay ahead of the curve and be able to end this outbreak.”

In New York State, where demand has far exceeded available vaccines, gay and bisexual men have faced a slow rollout of vaccines that has drawn comparisons to the early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

The state is expected to receive an additional 110,000 doses of monkeypox vaccine as part of the FDA’s latest rollout, 80,000 of which will go to New York.