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Biden said the recent spread of monkeypox infections could be a “consequence” if it continues
Author of the article:
Washington Post
Anabel Timsit and Sung Min Kim, The Washington Post
Publication date:
May 22, 2022 • 8 hours ago • 3 minutes reading • 212 comments Monkeypox, shown on an electron microscope image, is a viral disease associated with smallpox, but less contagious and less deadly. Photo by Cynthia C. Goldsmith / CDC
Content of the article
President Joe Biden said on Sunday that the United States was researching what vaccines might be available to protect people from monkeypox, saying “everyone” should be concerned as cases continue to spread around the world and some countries. increase their reserves for treatment.
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“We are working hard to find out what we are doing and what vaccine, if any, may be available for it,” said Biden of South Korea, where he is on an official visit.
Biden said the recent spread of monkeypox infections identified by the World Health Organization in at least 12 countries where the relatively rare disease is not endemic could be a “consequence” if it continues.
“Health advisers have not yet told me the level of exposure, but this is something that everyone should be concerned about,” Biden said. “It’s a concern that if it spreads, it will be consistent.”
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The first case of monkeypox in the United States, a man traveling to Canada; 17 suspected cases in Montreal
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CP NewsAlert: Health officials suspect 17 cases of monkeypox in Montreal
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U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the United States has vaccines to treat a potential outbreak of monkeypox and that Biden has been briefed to follow the case at home and abroad. “He has been informed about this very regularly,” Sullivan told Air Force One on Sunday after leaving South Korea.
Scientists are in a hurry to understand what causes infections and how to react. To date, the WHO has received reports of 92 laboratory-confirmed cases and 28 suspected cases investigated in the United States, Canada, Australia and European countries.
Studies show that the smallpox vaccine is at least 85% effective against monkeypox, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which says the United States has licensed two smallpox vaccines, one specifically authorized for monkeypox.
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The still unexplained spread of an infected virus has caused concern in the scientific community, which is still rocked by the coronavirus pandemic – but some experts care to point out that the two are different. Smallpox is less common among humans and there are vaccine options that have been shown to be effective against the disease.
At the moment, the overall risk to monkeypox society is considered “very, very low,” Tom Inglesby, director of the John Hopkins Center for Health Security, told The Washington Post.
A monkeypox infection has been identified in Massachusetts, and New York City health officials said Friday that two patients were tested as part of an investigation into alleged cases of monkeypox in the state. One patient tested positive for orthopoxvirus, the family of viruses to which monkeypox belongs, “and had a disease corresponding to monkeypox,” government officials said.
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On Wednesday, Bavarian Nordic, the Copenhagen-based company that developed the smallpox vaccine licensed for use against monkeypox in the United States, said the U.S. government had exercised its ability under an agreement with the pharmaceutical company to “deliver a freeze-dried version of JYNNEOS® smallpox vaccine, which allows the first doses of this version to be produced and invoiced in 2023 and 2024.
The order for new doses of the vaccine, which has a longer shelf life, is worth $ 119 million, Bavarian Nordic said in a press release. Under its agreement with the company, the U.S. Department of Advanced Biomedical Research and Development could still exercise options worth $ 180 million for about 13 million frozen doses of the smallpox vaccine in the future.
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A spokesman for health and human services told Axios that the purchase was not a direct response to the infections, but said the doses could be used to treat monkeypox.
Separately, Bavarian Nordic said it had “secured a contract with an undisclosed European country to supply its smallpox vaccine IMVANEX® in response to new cases of monkeypox evolution in May 2022. Imvanex, as Jynneos is known in Europe, is licensed only there for the treatment of smallpox, but has been used “off label” in previous cases of monkeypox.
At least two European countries have moved to stockpiling vaccines in a possible attempt to stay ahead of the spread. British Health Minister Sajid Javid confirmed on Friday that the United Kingdom – where the WHO says 21 to 30 monkeypox infections have been reported – has “supplied additional doses of vaccines that are effective against monkeypox”.
Meanwhile, Spain is preparing to buy thousands of additional doses of the Imvanex vaccine, according to the Spanish newspaper El Pais. Spain is also looking to buy more than an antiviral treatment for monkeypox called Tecovirimat, according to the newspaper.
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