LOS ANGELES (CNS) — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors ratified a local emergency declaration Tuesday in response to the monkeypox outbreak.
Board President Holly Mitchell issued a proclamation Monday night declaring an emergency in Los Angeles County, where more than 400 cases of monkeypox have been identified so far, nearly double the number of a week ago.
“This proclamation is critical in helping us get ahead of this virus,” Mitchell said in a statement. “By declaring a local emergency, it allows us to cut red tape to better dedicate resources and educate residents on how to protect themselves and help stop the spread. It will also allow the county to quickly administer vaccines as more become available and to make the necessary efforts to obtain supplies and improve outreach and awareness.
The Board of Supervisors unanimously upheld the declaration Tuesday.
As part of the proclamation, the Board of Supervisors will request that recovery assistance be made available under the California Disaster Assistance Act, and that the state expedite access to state and federal resources and any other appropriate federal recovery programs. disaster aid.
The Board of Supervisors will also direct county departments to implement all assessment, assistance, and monitoring efforts, as appropriate.
Governor Gavin Newsom issued a state of emergency for california Monday in response to rising monkeypox cases in the state. New York has also issued an emergency declaration, as has San Francisco.
Supervisor Janice Hahn wrote on Twitter Monday that she supports the emergency declaration.
“I hope this will help vaccination efforts and ultimately help slow the spread of this virus,” Hahn said in a tweet.
Supervisor Kathryn Barger said in a statement that the county “needs to get all the support available to expedite the distribution of vaccines and resources to people at risk and suffering from this terrible disease. I will work to ensure we do so quickly and efficient”. No time to lose”.
As of Monday, a total of 824 monkeypox cases were confirmed in California, the second-highest of any state, behind New York’s 1,390, while nationwide, the total count was 5,811, according to the most recent data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There were more than 400 cases in Los Angeles County as of Tuesday, mostly in gay men.
Monkeypox is usually transmitted through intimate skin-to-skin contact, as a result of infectious rashes and scabs, although respiratory secretions and body fluids exchanged during prolonged physical episodes, such as sexual intercourse, can also lead to transmission. , according to the CDC. It can also be spread by sharing items like bedding and towels.
Symptoms include fresh pimples, blisters, rashes, fever, and fatigue. There is no specific treatment. People who have been infected with smallpox, or who have been vaccinated, may be immune to monkeypox.
According to health officials, the vaccine can prevent infection if given before or shortly after exposure to the virus.
Gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men are at higher risk of contracting the virus, according to the CDC.
Last week, the Board of Supervisors voted to pressure federal health officials for more supplies of monkeypox vaccine and to increase funding for testing and administration of the shots. The county has been slowly expanding eligibility for the JYNNEOS monkeypox vaccine, but supplies remain extremely limited.
In Los Angeles County, monkeypox vaccines are available to people confirmed by the Department of Public Health to have had an immediate or high-risk contact with a known monkeypox patient, and to people who attended an event or visited a place where they had a high risk of exposure to a confirmed case. Those individuals are generally identified through the county’s contact tracing efforts and will be notified by the county.
Vaccines are also available for gay and bisexual men and transgender people diagnosed with rectal gonorrhea or early syphilis in the past year.
Also eligible for the vaccines are gay or bisexual men or transgender people who take HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP, or who attended or worked in a commercial sex venue or other place where they engaged in anonymous sex or sex with multiple partners. . such as in a sauna, bathhouse, or sex club, in the past 21 days.
Eligibility was expanded Tuesday to include gay or bisexual men or transgender people over the age of 18 who have had multiple or anonymous sexual partners in the past 14 days.
People who think they meet any of the criteria can contact their health care provider to see if that provider can administer the vaccine.
Qualified individuals who do not have a health care provider, or whose provider does not have the vaccine, may schedule an appointment at a designated immunization clinic or walk-in location. Information is available at ph.lacounty.gov/monkeypox. A list of monkeypox vaccine locations is available. here.
The county has also activated a website where residents can fill out an online form to see if they may be eligible for a vaccine and pre-register to be added to a waiting list.
People who register on the site and are eligible for the vaccine will receive a text message when it becomes available, with information on where to get vaccinated.
The registration website is here.
The county will open a monkeypox vaccination site Wednesday at the West Hollywood Library, 647 N. San Vicente Blvd., for people who previously registered for the vaccine. It will be open by appointment only from 9 am to 6 pm
The vaccine is a two-shot regimen, so additional supplies will be set aside to provide second doses for those who received the initial shot.
Copyright © 2022 by City News Service, Inc. All rights reserved.