More monkeypox vaccine clinics opening across New York as Biden administration declares public health emergency
NEW YORK -- The Biden administration has declared a public health emergency on the monkeypox outbreak.
Upwards of 80,000 people are being tested each week, and the Department of Health and Human Services estimates there are anywhere from 1.6-1.7 million people at high risk for monkeypox in the United States.
With more than 6,600 confirmed cases, up from less than 5,000 a week ago, the U.S. now has more infections than any other country in the world, and as CBS2's Dick Brennan reports, New York City is epicenter.
As of Thursday, there are 1,630 cases here.
MONKEYPOX IN NYC: Identifying symptoms, prevention tips, how to get a vaccine and more
In the midst of a state and national health emergency, the Sexual Health Clinic in Chelsea continues to administer the monkeypox vaccine. Brooklyn resident Daniel Jeoung received his dose Thursday.
"Those who not considering it something serious right now are going to eventually realize that it is," he told CBS2's Alecia Reid.
Health officials say monkeypox is spreading faster and more uniquely than previous outbreaks.
"Now, with this decision from the president, what you'll see is vaccines moving faster to our neighborhoods to ensure that we can take care of those people," said Dr. Ramon Tallaj, chairman of SOMOS Community Care.
Declaring a national emergency frees up more money for staffing and for evaluating and developing vaccines.
"We are prepared to take our response to the next level in addressing this virus, and we urge every American to take monkeypox seriously and to take responsibility to help us tackle this virus," said Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra.
Watch Dick Brennan's report
Demand for vaccines remains high in New York City. There was a waiting room within 12 minutes of more appointments opening at 6 p.m. Thursday, and by 6:25 p.m., all appointments were booked.
"I think it's just the limited number of vaccines that are available that's making it difficult," Jeoung said.
New York City opened two new vaccination sites Thursday evening in Brooklyn -- one on Livonia Avenue, another on Flushing Avenue.
In White Plains at the Loft LGBTQ+ Community Center on Bryant Avenue, they are holding vaccine clinics for first-dose monkeypox vaccine, and they will have another clinic on Aug. 18.
"So these vaccination appointments are really filling up very fast, and we need everyone to really make an appointment so that we can ensure that there's enough vaccination to go to the folks who have made the requests for an appointment," said Jeffrey Guard, director of marketing and communications for the Loft.
- To schedule a vaccine appointment at the Loft, click here.
More than 700,000 doses of the two-shot vaccine were shipped out nationally Monday, bringing the total to just above 1 million, but that's not enough for one-third of the gay and bisexual men the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says are at high risk.
"This is a whole of government failure. It's not one agency," Yale epidemiologist Gregg Gonsalves said.
Gonsalves says reaction has been too slow.
"There's been this sort of nonchalance and malaise about the COVID pandemic over the past year or so, and now we're seeing it with monkeypox," he said.
Mayor Eric Adams says there continues to be an issue getting vaccines from the feds.
"As we get the supplies from the federal government, we are going to get them out. We are going to make sure we give them to the people to take the vaccines," he said.
While New York City remains the epicenter, numbers are trending downwards. The president's health emergency will allow for data tracking to get vaccines out to at-risk communities faster.
"I try not to be too close to people in general, even though I live in one of the most crowded cities in the world," Chelsea resident Richard Smith said.
HHS has secured an additional 6.9 million doses. States can order their next round of vaccines on Aug. 15. If they happen to surpass 90 percent of their allocation before then, they can order sooner.
