Biden Administration Declares Monkeypox Public Health Emergency
On Aug. 4, the Biden administration declared a public health emergency (PHE) due to the rapid spread
of monkeypox. More than 7,100 cases of monkeypox have been confirmed in the United
States since May 18. The PHE allows additional funding to be released and quickly
allocated to states for testing and treatment of monkeypox.
On July 23, the World Health Organization declared that monkeypox was a public health emergency of international concern—its
highest-level warning—after confirmed outbreaks in about 70 countries where
the virus has not historically spread.
The
Biden administration is taking a three-pronged approach to addressing the spread
and treatment of monkeypox in the United States. In addition to the PHE, the administration
has also appointed Robert Fenton as the White House National monkeypox
Coordinator and Demetre Daskalakis, M.D., M.P.H., as Deputy Coordinator. The coordinators
“will lead the administration’s strategy and operations to combat the current
monkeypox outbreak, including equitably increasing the availability of tests, vaccinations, and treatments.”
Additionally, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is considering
ways to address the shortage of the monkeypox vaccine. The head of the FDA said the
agency is exploring a strategy that involves injecting a smaller dose of vaccine
in the upper layer of the skin, according
to the New York Times. The strategy could turn a one-dose vial
of the vaccine into up to five separate doses.
ADEA
will continue to monitor the Biden administration’s response to the monkeypox outbreak. Additional
information about monkeypox can be found on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website.
