Sydney 5 August, Sydney : Health officials in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) will begin the nation’s initial rollout of monkeypox vaccinations on August 8 in the wake of an increase in the amount of cases.As of Friday, Australia had 58 confirmed monkeypox cases, with 56 of who contracted the virus in other countries, and 33 cases were reported in NSW as reported by Xinhua news agency.
To address the growing situation, NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said people in high-risk groups, such as bisexual and gay men, sex workers and those who are HIV-positive could be eligible to receive the first 5,500 doses.
The doses are part of the shipment of 22,000 that is expected to arrive in Australia in the next days with another 30,000 set aside to NSW next month, and hundreds of thousands more in the coming year.
The Federal government has issued a request for 450,000 doses that are based on the smallpox vaccine that is available by the Danish pharmaceutical company Bavarian Nordic.
Australian Health Minister Mark Butler said the country was quick to respond to the outbreak, procuring vaccines “in an era of scarce supply and huge worldwide demand”.
“This is a significant step in reducing the chance and impact of any further outbreaks of monkeypox in Australia,” he said.
Chant However, the doctor has cautioned that the vaccines, while important in stopping the spread of the disease but they do not “provide total protection against the virus”.
“We encourage people to be on the lookout for signs particularly for those who have recently traveled overseas in Britain, Europe and North America.”
The symptoms are headache, fever fatigue, sweats, chills, coughing , and sore throat.
The condition, which typically lasts between two and four weeks, usually results in a painful rash that looks like pimples or blisters with the lesions advancing through stages before fading away.
