For more than two years, local health officials in New York have been busy. Between a global pandemic and now the state’s monkeypox outbreak, County Health Officials Association Executive Director Sarah Ravenhall says public health offices are juggling multiple issues.
The front lines of the monkeypox outbreak in New York have been at the county level, and officials have needed resources.
“Public health is in the spotlight right now and we’ve been doing a good job as far as we can when we don’t have enough vaccine for the demand,” Ravenhall said.
This week, New York Health Commissioner Mary Bassett declared monkeypox an imminent public health threat. The measure will provide more resources to local health officials to respond to the outbreak. At the same time, the federal government sends 100,000 additional doses of monkeypox vaccine to New York, providing further relief.
The statement came after elected officials and advocates criticized the state and federal response to the outbreak. Locally, the surge in cases has led to an even heavier workload for health officials.
“That increased workload can cover things like staff overtime, supplies needed to run vaccine clinics, or educational campaigns that go out into communities, working with community partners,” Ravenhall said.
Local health offices still need more help, such as including monkeypox in the federal PREP Act. The measure would allow health officials to expand vaccine distribution and provide legal protections during the response.
“It allows our local health department members to draw from a larger pool of licensed vaccinators when they host clinics and need to reach out into the community,” Ravenhall said.
Health officials say anyone can contract monkey pox. But the vast majority of cases have been found within LGBTQ communities and are often transmitted by men who have sex with other men.
“Our priority right now is health equity: making sure the LGBTQ-plus population has equitable access to the vaccine and information right now,” Ravenhall said.
Ravenhall says that beyond vaccines, local health officials are also tasked with public education.
“Stay informed so you can protect yourself and your family from this contagious, but preventable virus,” he said.