Colorado increases monkeypox vaccine eligibility as supply increases
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
The monkeypox vaccine shortage is starting to ease, allowing Colorado to expand eligibility for the free shot.
What to know: The initial criteria issued by state health officials prioritized high-risk individuals and men who have sex with men and rationed the vaccine to just one dose of the two needed.
- Under new guidance released this week, most anyone who considers themself at-risk is eligible.
- Those now able to get the shot include: Anyone in close contact with someone who had monkeypox in the last 14 days; anyone with multiple or anonymous sexual partners; and anyone living with HIV.
Of note: The monkeypox vaccine also is now available at state-run mobile clinics.
What they're saying: "This eligibility expansion allows Coloradans to proactively protect themselves and their communities by getting vaccinated before potential exposures, rather than only after a known exposure," Rachel Herlihy, the state's epidemiologist, said in a statement.
By the numbers: Colorado has counted about 300 cases of monkeypox, a third of which are in Denver, and issued 15,000 vaccine doses.
Between the lines: The shot is now administered in the outer layers of the skin, a method that increases the doses in each vial five-fold, Colorado public health officials tell Axios Denver.
- The state has received about 19,000 doses of the Jynneos vaccine from the federal government and expects to be able to order more in a few weeks.