Florida health officials said Monday second shots of the monkeypox vaccine temporarily halted last week will now be rescheduled.
With the monkeypox vaccine still in short supply, the Biden administration is changing how the vaccine is administered to stretch the number of doses that can be given with one vial. Florida will follow the new dosing strategy.
The Jynneos vaccine now will be given between layers of skin — what’s known as an intradermal injection — rather than into the muscle as had initially been done. Only a fifth of the full dose is needed for each person by administering the shots in this new way, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
“Department of Health – Broward is committed to preventing the spread of monkeypox,” said Nina Levine, a spokeswoman.
Levine said now that the federal government has issued an Emergency Use Authorization with the new dosing strategy for intradermal injection of the JYNNEOS vaccine, Florida health officials will move forward with second doses.
“All appointments that were canceled have been rescheduled,” she said. DOH-Broward will continue to provide monkeypox vaccinations for individuals who are likely to have recently been exposed to monkeypox through our vaccination sites, as well as sites operated with community partners and healthcare provider partners.”
Jynneos vaccines, given as a two-dose regimen 28 days apart, are coming to states from the national stockpile and being given to those at high risk for monkeypox.
“In recent weeks the monkeypox virus has continued to spread at a rate that has made it clear our current vaccine supply will not meet the current demand,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert M. Califf said at a news briefing last week. “This [dosing change] will increase the total number of doses available for use by up to five-fold.”
This new method of dosing is harder to administer because it must be given between layers of skin, and requires special training.
Dr. Aileen Marty, an infectious diseases specialist with Florida International University, said this new method of administering the Jynneos vaccine is still unproven. The dosing strategy is based on a single 2015 study of 524 subjects.
“There’s not a lot of data and that’s what worries me tremendously,” Marty said. “We’re in a desperate situation and they are trying to give as many people as possible some level of protection.”
Even with the change in how the shot is given, an individual still will need to receive two doses of the vaccine to be protected.
Florida is now the third highest state for confirmed or probable cases. Statewide there are 1,266 confirmed or probable cases of monkeypox. Of those, 929 or 73% are in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. The virus continues to spread quickly in South Florida; the count has risen by 328 in less than a week.
Most cases of monkeypox in the United States have been traced to male-to-male sexual contact, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo said the same findings hold true in Florida.
Those considered “at risk” and eligible for the Jynneos vaccine in Florida include health care personnel at high risk for monkeypox, close contacts of anyone with monkeypox, immunocompromised men who have sex with men, and men who have sex with men with a recent history of a sexually transmissible disease.
Dr. Zachary Henry, medical director of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation in Fort Lauderdale, said second dose appointments this week will continue as scheduled at his clinic. “It seems like this smaller dose in a different location will create the same response. If that’s what the Department of Health wants us to give out, we will do it,” he said.
In Broward, monkeypox vaccine appointments can be made at vaccineappointmentbroward.com . Individuals should check the website frequently for appointment availability. In Miami-Dade appointments can be made at miamidade.gov/monkeypox, or by calling 1-833-875-0900. In Palm Beach County, where there are only 59 cases, appointments are made only after an assessment by the local health officials in response to a medical provider’s request.
Sun Sentinel health reporter Cindy Goodman can be reached at cgoodman@sunsentinel.com or Twitter @cindykgoodman.
UPDATE: This article has been updated to reflect that the two doses of the vaccine are given 28 days apart.
