San Diego County health officials announced it will distribute 705 monkeypox (Mpox) vaccine vials this week to healthcare providers around the region, with up to five doses offered in a single vial.
The new vaccines are being made available from county reserves and will be distributed under a newly authorized intradermal—or "within the skin'' —procedure, allowing up to five doses from a single vial. According to the county, those who are younger than 18 years old or immunocompromised will require a full-vial dose.
Health care providers will independently notify patients who qualify for the vaccine, then schedule vaccination appointments, according to county health officials. Those appointments are not being made by the county through 2-1-1.
“Being able to expand the number of doses through the intradermal procedure is going to help us vaccinate much more eligible San Diegans,” said Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer in a news release.
According to Wooten, the county will continue to request additional doses from the state, although the overall supply of vaccines remains low. The county is expecting another 990 vials of the vaccine to arrive from the state soon.
“In the meantime, we ask those at high risk to be cautious about their partners and have any signs of monkeypox immediately checked out by a physician,” Wooten said.
San Diego County has recorded 223 cases of monkeypox, ranging in age from 20 to 64 and all among males.
A limited number of daily Mpox vaccines are made available Monday through the MyTurn appointment system
The County Public Health Centers will continue to vaccinate those who have a documented exposure, and to serve individuals without a healthcare provider,” the county wrote in a statement.
For more information on monkeypox, how to prevent it, and who should get vaccinated, visit the County’s Mpox website or call 2-1-1.
