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The U.S. epidemic of monkeypox is on the decline as vaccines become more available and there is a broader public awareness of what steps individuals can take to reduce their risk of contracting it, White House health officials said.
It took 25 days for cases to double in August, down from eight days in July, said Demetrius Daskalakis, deputy head of the White House Epidemic Response Team. California, New York, Illinois and Texas all saw significant declines in new cases last month, Daskalakis said.
“The positive trends we’re seeing in this data speak to the actions of individuals across the country who are taking measures to protect themselves from the virus, including changing behaviors and seeking testing and vaccinations,” Daskalakis said.
The United States is still battling the world’s largest outbreak of monkeypox, with nearly 21,000 cases reported in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Monkey disease is mainly spread among gay and bisexual men, although anyone can get the virus through close contact with an infected person or contaminated materials such as towels and bedding. The disease is rarely fatal, but it can cause painful sores that look like pimples or blisters.
The Biden administration faced criticism over the summer for not moving quickly enough to increase vaccine supplies to meet the high demand for shots. Health Secretary Xavier Becerra announced Public health emergency It was approved by the Food and Drug Administration last month A different method of administering vaccines It allows providers to extract additional doses from each vial of vaccine.
The Jynneos vaccine, made by Danish biotech company Bavarian Nordich, is a monkeypox vaccine approved in the U.S. It is given in two doses 28 days apart, with the peak immune response coming two weeks after the second dose.
Although public health officials expect protection from monkeypox, the CDC does not yet have real-world efficacy data on the Genes vaccine.
Vaccination availability has expanded significantly since early August. The U.S. has so far administered more than 460,000 rabies vaccinations, according to data from 35 states provided to the CDC. About 1.6 million gay and bisexual men are at high risk for HIV and have been a primary focus of vaccination efforts.
Black and Hispanic communities have been particularly hard hit by the virus. According to CDC data, 38% of patients are black, 29% Hispanic, and 27% white. According to 2020 Census data, the total US population is 12% black, 19% Hispanic, and 61% white.
Daskalakis said the CDC and the White House have been working with Black and Brown communities to improve vaccine access. Over the Labor Day weekend, 4,000 vaccinations were administered at Black Pride in Atlanta, according to Robert Fenton, head of the White House’s chiropractic response team.
The US is offering vaccinations at Pride and other events that are heavily attended by gay and bisexual men to make the shot more accessible. More than 3,000 doses of Southern Decadence have been held in New Orleans, Fenton said. America is donating 820 doses to Boise Pride and 10,000 doses to California ahead of the Folsom Street Fair and Castro Street Fair, Fenton said.
Daskalakis said federal health officials are working with colleges and universities as school returns to inform them of resources and tools available to address outbreaks despite infections on campus.
“The risk in colleges is very low,” Daskalakis said. “Actually, given the way this virus is spreading in the population, the risk in those places is low. Awareness is more important than anxiety,” he said.
People with shingles should stay indoors, stay away from other people, and not share any items or materials with other people until the rash heals and new skin forms, according to CDC guidelines.
People with a new or unknown rash should avoid sex and social gatherings, especially those involving close skin-to-skin contact, the CDC says. People can reduce their risk of infection by temporarily restricting sexual partners two weeks after receiving the second monkeypox vaccine.
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