(CNN) — The administration of President Joe Biden declared the monkey pox as a public health emergency this Thursday, while cases are on the rise in the United States.
The announcement came during a briefing by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
The administration has been criticized at times for its handling of the outbreak, with some calling on the government to declare a national emergency without delay.
Politico was the first outlet to report on plans to make the statement.
The first case of monkeypox in the US was identified in mid-May. And, since then, they have detected more than 6,600 probable or confirmed cases in the country. In fact, all states report infections except Montana and Wyoming.
The measure is in line with the precedent of the World Health Organization that declared monkeypox as a public health emergency of international concern. The WHO explains that this classification refers to “an extraordinary event” that constitutes a “public health risk to other States through the international spread of disease” and “that potentially requires a coordinated international response.”
Some cities and states, including the city of New York, San Francisco, California, Illinois and New York have already declared monkeypox an emergency. This allows them to access funds and resources for their responses to the outbreak.
On Tuesday, President Joe Biden named Robert Fenton as the White House’s national response coordinator for monkeypox. Fenton, a regional administrator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency that oversees Arizona, California, Hawaii and Nevada, will coordinate the federal government’s actions on the outbreak. Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, director of the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), serves as deputy coordinator.
Some public health experts have harshly criticized the Biden administration for not acting more quickly to address the crisis.
One of those reviews CNN reported hours earlier this Thursday, was that HHS waited more than three weeks following the first confirmed case in the United States to order that bulk stocks of monkeypox vaccine—which the government owns and stores in Denmark—be bottled and shipped to the country for distribution. The delay was due in part to concerns that once the vaccines were taken out of storage, they would lose years of shelf life.
Monkeypox can infect anyone, but most cases in this US outbreak have been among men who have sex with men, including gay and bisexual men, and people who identify as transgender. Close contact with an infected person is required for the monkeypox virus to spread, experts say.
The CDC initially announced that monkeypox vaccines would be released from the Strategic National Stockpile and offered to “high-risk” contacts of patients with the disease, as well as the health care workers who treat them. Since then, federal health officials have expanded vaccination efforts to focus on the broader community of men who have sex with men, the demographic that makes up the majority of cases.
In addition to providing vaccines, the CDC has said since June that it has made a concerted effort to provide broad education and outreach to the LGBTQ community.
Possible change in the way the vaccine is given
Health officials are considering changing the way monkeypox vaccine doses are administered because the country is “at a critical tipping point” with the spread of the virus, the commissioner told reporters Thursday. of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Dr. Robert Califf.
“Over the past few days, it has become clear to all of us that given the continued spread of the virus, we are at a critical tipping point, dictating the need for additional solutions to address the increase in infection rates,” Califf said. “The goal has always been to vaccinate as many people as possible.”
The commissioner said officials are considering allowing health care providers to be able to use a shared-dose method where one vial of the Jynneos vaccine, previously used as one dose, will be used to administer up to five separate doses.
This approach would change the way Jynneos is managed, Califf said. Instead of the vaccine being given into the layer of fat under the skin, it will be given under the layer of skin.
“Intradermal administration has some advantages, including a better immune response to the vaccine,” Califf said. “It is important to note that the overall safety and efficacy profile will not be sacrificed by this approach. Please note that we have been exploring all scientifically feasible options and believe this might be a promising approach.”
CNN’s Jamie Gumbrecht contributed to this report.
