Following New York and Illinois, California Gov. Gavin Newsom has declared a monkeypox emergency in his state.
"California is working urgently across all levels of government to slow the spread of monkeypox, leveraging our robust testing, contact tracing and community partnerships strengthened during the pandemic to ensure that those most at risk are our focus for vaccines, treatment and outreach," said Newsom in a press release. "We'll continue to work with the federal government to secure more vaccines, raise awareness about reducing risk, and stand with the LGBTQ community fighting stigmatization."
To expand vaccination efforts, the proclamation enables Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel to administer monkeypox vaccines approved by the FDAsimilar to the statutory authorization recently enacted for pharmacists to administer vaccines. The state's response to monkeypox builds on the infrastructure developed during the COVID-19 pandemic to deploy vaccine clinics and ensure inclusive and targeted outreach in partnership with local and community-based organizations.
According to Newsom, "to date, the state has distributed more than 25,000 vaccine doses and will make additional allocations in the coming days and weeks. Los Angeles County has received a separate allocation of vaccine."
State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, the author of several laws regarding LGBTQ+ issues, welcomed the declaration, per NBC News. "We need to use every tool we have to control it," he said in a statement.