HHS declares monkeypox a public health emergency
The administration says declaring a PHE would accelerate the federal response to the virus' spread.
Photo: David Talukday/Getty Images
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra on Thursday declared the ongoing spread of monkeypox virus in the United States a public health emergency.
The announcement comes on the heels of President Biden appointing Robert Fenton of the Federal Emergency Management Agency as White House national monkeypox response coordinator and Dr. Demetre Daskalakis of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as White House national monkeypox response deputy coordinator.
The administration said declaring a PHE would accelerate the federal response to the virus' spread and communicate the seriousness and urgency of the outbreak.
WHAT'S THE IMPACT?
The PHE declaration is in concert with the Food and Drug Administration's work to explore options for getting vaccines to affected communities across the country, including using a new dose-sparing approach that could, according to HHS, increase the number of doses available by up to fivefold.
The PHE also carries implications for data sharing with the federal government. Fifty-one jurisdictions have already signed data use agreements that will provide the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with information related to vaccine administration.
Declaring the outbreak an emergency may provide the justification that the remaining jurisdictions need to sign their agreements, said HHS. And it authorizes the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to collect testing and hospitalization data.
The Biden Administration has framed the action as part of a larger, comprehensive strategy to combat the monkeypox outbreak. The strategy includes significantly scaling the production and availability of vaccines, expanding testing capacity and making testing more convenient, reducing burdens in accessing treatments, and conducting outreach to stakeholders and members of the LGBTQI+ communities.
THE LARGER TREND
As of Thursday, HHS has shipped more than 602,000 doses of the JYNNEOS vaccine to states and jurisdictions, an increase of 266,000 in the past week. The agency has allocated 1.1 million doses to states and jurisdictions in total and is making more doses available as jurisdictions use their current supply.
HHS also announced it has accelerated the delivery of an additional 150,000 doses to arrive in the U.S. next month. The doses, which were slated to arrive in November, will now arrive in September.
The current outbreak of monkeypox, a viral zoonosis – a virus transmitted to humans from animals – was confirmed in May, beginning with a cluster of cases found in the United Kingdom, which has since spread to mainland Europe and the U.S.
The World Health Organization declared monkeypox a public health emergency of international concern in July. The number of monkeypox cases continues to rise globally and nationally.
Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston found last month that there is a low risk of monkeypox transmission in healthcare settings.
Twitter: @JELagasse
Email the writer: jeff.lagasse@himssmedia.com
