The best doctor in Canada says they are negotiating to get more vaccine to reduce monkeypox, as confirmed cases reached 278 across the country.
Public health director Theresa Tam says there are “ongoing discussions and contract negotiations” to get doses of Bavarian Nordic, the Danish manufacturer of a smallpox vaccine approved for use against smallpox.
He says the current doses come from Canada’s National Strategic Emergency Reserve for specific use in high-risk areas.
This includes Quebec, where Tam says more than 7,000 people have been vaccinated, and Ontario, where he estimates about 5,000 people have been vaccinated.
He says provinces have the supply they need at the moment, but that federal officials are monitoring closely as regions reduce supply.
Tam says June 29 there were 202 confirmed cases of monkeypox reported in Quebec, 67 in Ontario, five in Alberta and four in British Columbia.
Most cases are men between the ages of 20 and 69, and most reported intimate sexual contact with other men, although the risk of smallpox is not unique to any group or environment.
Tam stressed that anyone, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, can become infected if they are in close contact with someone who has smallpox or if they come in contact with personal items belonging to an infected person, including towels or sheets.
Bavarian Nordic said earlier this month that the Public Health Agency of Canada had accepted a five-year, $ 56 million contract to buy its Imvamune vaccine.
Deliveries were expected to begin in 2023.
Tam did not comment on how much is left in Canadian stock, but said the provinces that now conduct vaccinations “have what they need.”
“We have had very close bilateral talks with the provinces regarding supply as they begin to pick up the supply assigned to their particular jurisdiction,” Tam said Thursday.
“Of course, there are ongoing discussions and contract negotiations with Bavarian Nordic, the manufacturer, to access more.”
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on June 30, 2022.
Cassandra Szklarski, The Canadian Press