Baltimore directs sparse monkeypox vaccine doses to "truly marginalized," 21 cases confirmed in region
BALTIMORE -- Baltimore City is steering a limited supply of monkeypox vaccines to people identified as most at-risk, health officials said Tuesday.
Nearly 3,500 cases of monkeypox have been confirmed throughout the United States, 87 of them here in Maryland, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
There are 21 cases in the Baltimore metro region as of Tuesday, according to Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Letitia Dzirasa.
"We're doing what we can to secure as many doses as we can as quickly as possible and we do anticipate receiving more doses," Dzirasa said.
The state has distributed 200 doses of the vaccine to Montgomery and Prince George's counties and Baltimore City, the highest-risk jurisdictions.
The health commissioner said the city's share of vaccines will be administered equitably, with 75 doses going to Chase Brexton Healthcare, 60 doses for contact tracing for confirmed contacts, and 65 doses for health department clinics and services.
Dr. Dzirasa emphasized that the city is not withholding any vaccination doses from residents.
"I want to dispel the notion that there's a stockpile of shots that aren't being used," she said. "We were given 200 doses and we are working to distribute those doses in an equitable way to the individuals at the highest risk of contracting and spreading monkeypox here in Baltimore."
With such a limited supply, the health commissioner said her department is following CDC guidelines to reach the truly marginalized, like "those who are dependent on transactional sex to make rent, or the trans youth who doesn't have a place to live, or the individuals on methamphetamine that are having anonymous sex while using."
"For Baltimore to only be allotted 200 vaccinations, when I heard that…I was livid," Brian Thomas, a travel nurse from Baltimore who was among the first in the state to test positive.
The Maryland Department of Health did not agree to WJZ's request for an interview, instead sending WJZ a statement, reading in part, "The federal government has allocated the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) a total of 3,363 doses of Jynneos Monkeypox vaccine and, as directed, is employing a hub and spoke distribution model. Accordingly, MDH has allocated 3,000 doses to local health departments, who are providing information on vaccine availability and vaccinating residents. MDH has retained 363 doses to provide to other jurisdictions as needed."
MDH says it and local health departments have conducted "extensive contact tracing" and offered vaccination to those in close contact with confirmed patients.
The virus is spreading mostly through close, intimate contact with someone who has monkeypox, according to the CDC.
Symptoms of the virus, which are similar to those of smallpox but milder by comparison, include fever, headache, muscle aches and exhaustion, according to the CDC. Infected individuals are known to develop a rash on the face and other parts of the body.
Thomas told WJZ that his two roommates got vaccinated a day after his diagnosis.
Anyone can get Monkeypox, but right now it primarily impacts gay and bisexual men. It can be spread through non-sexual contact. It can cause a rash and flu-like symptoms.
Thomas says he's concerned about stigmatizing the disease, but it is important to get the message to the gay community.
"We have been through a plague before and we know what to do. There are efforts we can do to reduce the spread," Thomas said "At this point, we need to be vaccinating the at-risk population and there's just not enough of it and it's really unacceptable."
To avoid infection, it is recommended that people avoid contact with those who have symptoms, wear a face mask around others and wash their hands frequently with soap and water or hand sanitizer.
The outbreak has touched over 70 countries and led the World Health Organization to declare a global health emergency over the weekend as authorities step up their efforts to combat the spread of the virus.
