Health district announces monkeypox vaccine appointments

As cases of once-rare monkeypox increase across the U.S., those at higher risk can now make appointments with the Southern Nevada Health District to be vaccinated.

The monkeypox vaccine is unlike many vaccines in that it can protect people even after they’ve been exposed to the disease and before they develop symptoms.

“We want to try to identify people who have had a recent exposure,” Dr. Cort Lohff, chief medical officer with the Southern Nevada Health District, said in an interview Friday.

To prevent disease, it is best for someone to be vaccinated within four days of exposure, Lohff said. Vaccination up to 14 days after exposure may lessen symptoms — which can include painful skin lesions — if not prevent disease.

A recent outbreak of monkeypox has resulted in nearly 3,000 confirmed cases across the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have been seven confirmed or probable cases investigated in Clark County, one of which resulted in hospitalization.

“At this time, the risk for the general public is very low,” Lohff said. Based on what is known about cases in Nevada, the U.S. and globally, “monkeypox has really been confined to a specific population group, and that is primarily men who have sex with men.”

Lohff emphasized that the district currently has a limited inventory of about 400 doses of vaccine.

“One of the big frustrations with this current situation is there is only a limited supply,” he said. “According to the CDC and our federal partners, they’re working very quickly to increase the supply of vaccine.”

Some doses already have been given to a small number of people in Clark County, including close contacts of infected individuals identified through contact tracing, field investigators and laboratory personnel, he said.

The vaccine, known by the brand name Jynneos, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration to prevent both monkeypox and smallpox.

Eligibility for vaccine

Monkeypox is primarily spread through intimate contact. The higher-risk groups currently eligible to receive the vaccine include:

— Those who had close physical contact within the past 14 days with someone known or suspected of having monkeypox. This includes those who know or suspect that their sexual partner or partners have monkeypox.

— Those who have been informed by the health district that they are a close contact of someone with monkeypox.

— Gay, bisexual, or other men who have sex with men, and/or transgender, gender nonconforming, or gender nonbinary people who had multiple or anonymous sex partners in the past 14 days, especially at a venue, event, or within a social group where a person with a known or suspected case of monkeypox was present.

People in these groups with HIV or another condition that weakens their immune system, or with a history of atopic dermatitis or eczema, may have added risk.

People who had a prior case of monkeypox are not eligible for the vaccine, and the vaccine is currently only licensed for use in people 18 or older. Clients will be assessed prior to receiving the vaccine to ensure they meet the eligibility requirements, the health district said in a news release.

While certain groups are at higher risk, anyone potentially can be infected with monkeypox. Although it’s rarely fatal, “it carries symptoms that can be quite debilitating,” said Dr. Bayo Curry-Winchell, urgent care medical director for Saint Mary’s and Carbon Health in Northern Nevada, and a member of Gov. Steve Sisolak’s COVID-19 medical advisory team.

The district urged people with unidentified rashes and lesions to contact their health care provider for an assessment and in the meantime to avoid sex or being intimate.

Monkeypox is spread through direct contact with an infectious rash, scabs or body fluids. It is also spread through respiratory secretions during prolonged face-to-face contact, or during intimate physical contact, such as kissing, cuddling or sex.

It can spread through touching objects and fabrics, such as clothing or linens, that previously touched the rash or body fluids of someone with monkeypox.

Monkeypox can spread from the time symptoms start until the rash has fully healed and a fresh layer of skin has formed, which can take several weeks.

Appointments

Vaccination appointments may be made through the health district’s online system at vax4nv.nv.gov/patient/s — select the “Routine” vaccination option — or by calling 702-759-0850 for assistance. Appointments will begin on Monday.

Updated information about monkeypox is available on the health district’s website at southernnevadahealthdistrict.org/health-topics/monkeypox. Additional information is available on the CDC’s website at cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/index.html.

Contact Mary Hynes at mhynes@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0336. Follow @MaryHynes1 on Twitter.