US Doubles its Supply of Monkeypox Vaccines
The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) purchased 2.5 million more doses of FDA-approved monkeypox vaccines in an effort to prevent future outbreaks. This latest development brings the total number of Jynneos vaccine doses to 4.4 million between 2022 and 2023.
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Developed by the Danish company Bavarian Nordic, the Jynneos vaccine has been approved to treat both smallpox and monkeypox after compelling data from both monkey and human studies showed that a single dose protects against the disease. The second dose serves to extend the durability of protection.
Monkeypox is an infectious disease that can be caught via rodents (rats, mice, squirrels etc.) in western and central Africa. Transmission occurs when bitten by an infected animal or when touching its blood, bodily fluids, spots, blisters, or scabs.
The HHS has promised to administer 296,000 doses of the Jynneos vaccine in the coming weeks.
It is also possible to catch the disease by eating meat from the infected rodent that has not been cooked properly. Human transmission occurs through touching either the body, clothing, bedding, or towels of an individual infected by monkeypox. Coughing and sneezing likewise spread the disease.
So far, the recorded number of cases in the US for monkeypox has been over 300, though health authorities believe this is an underestimate. In response, the HHS has promised to administer 296,000 doses of the Jynneos vaccine in the coming weeks.
To keep up with the demand, Bavarian Nordic has announced that it will produce the latest doses in freeze-dried form from vaccines already manufactured in bulk.
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