Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Another 1.8M Monkeypox Jabs Open To Orders Next Week, With Caveats
The Hill: Biden Officials Accelerating Monkeypox Vaccine Effort, Including 1.8 Million Additional Doses
The Biden administration is planning to accelerate the delivery of its remaining supply of monkeypox vaccines and will make an additional 1.8 million doses available for ordering starting Monday, officials said Thursday. Jurisdictions will only be able to access the additional doses if they adopt the new intradermal administration of vaccine and have used 90 percent of their current supply of vaccine, officials said. (Weixel, 8/18)
AP: US Offers Extra Monkeypox Vaccine Doses For Gay Pride Events
The U.S. is setting aside an extra 50,000 doses of monkeypox vaccine for places with upcoming gay pride events, health officials said Thursday. The number of doses sent to each place will be based on factors like the size of the event, how many health workers will be available to give shots, and how many of the attendees are considered at highest risk for catching the virus. (Stobbe, 8/18)
Critics blast the administration's plan as an "accounting trick" —
The Washington Post: White House Speeds Monkeypox Vaccines, But Not Everyone Likes The Pace
White House officials on Thursday touted steps to expand access to monkeypox vaccines, including a deal to finish 2.5 million vials in the United States. Although some local health officials applauded the moves, others were unnerved by a rapid plan to stretch existing supply by splitting vaccine doses into fifths, clamoring for more time to examine the data and train providers to deliver the shots correctly. The Biden administration is “forcing our hand,” said one local health official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they did not want to jeopardize vaccine orders. “It’s extraordinarily frustrating because we have to execute and defend this strategy … it’s just a question of giving us the time and the doses to bridge to that strategy.” (Diamond and Nirappil, 8/18)
The New York Times: Monkeypox Vaccine Plan Prods Cities And States To Adopt New Dosing Regimen
James Krellenstein, a founder of PrEP4All, an advocacy group for H.I.V. patient care, called Thursday’s announcement about the distribution of vaccine doses “a complete accounting trick.” Activists also say the new protocol could exacerbate existing racial disparities and signal to people of color that they might be getting a lesser dose, despite health officials’ approval. “Once it starts becoming equitable, now it’s not, ‘We’ll give you the dosage that everyone was getting prior,’ it’s, ‘We’ll give you the shorter doses,’” said Jennifer Barnes-Balenciaga, a Black transgender woman who is helping to lead RESPND-MI, an epidemiological study on monkeypox. (Stolberg, Otterman and Mandavilli, 8/18)
And the U.S. reportedly knew for years that it didn't have enough smallpox vax —
Politico: Before Monkeypox Outbreak, U.S. Officials Knew For Years They Didn't Have Enough Of Key Shot
Top U.S. health officials have known for years that the country’s Strategic National Stockpile did not have enough doses of a smallpox vaccine that is now key to the monkeypox fight, according to three former senior officials and a current official working on the monkeypox response. The U.S. has stockpiled Jynneos, the vaccine by Bavarian Nordic, which is also being used to combat monkeypox. The U.S. never had the money to purchase the millions of doses that experts felt were necessary, the officials said. (Banco and Collis, 8/18)
The Biden administration is also expanding its supply of Tpoxx —
USA Today: Monkeypox Vaccine Getting 1.8M More Doses Under Biden Administration
The administration also announced Thursday it will expand its supply of the antiviral treatment tecovirimat, sold under the brand name TPOXX, by 50,000 doses. Allocation will be based on the number of cases in an area and the number of individuals at high risk of contracting the virus, including those who are living with HIV. (Stanton, 8/18)
VeryWellHealth: Tpoxx Is Our Best Bet For Treating Monkeypox. So Why Is It So Hard To Get?
Even though the drug is free, accessing Tpoxx requires providers to fill out a slew of paperwork and schedule multiple follow-up appointments with patients—a process that takes time and resources. (Bugos, 8/18)
