African Americans not getting equal access to monkeypox vaccine, data shows

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A nurse holds a vial containing the monkeypox vaccine at a vaccination clinic run by the Mecklenburg County Public Health Department in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, Aug. 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)
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African Americans are not getting equal access to the monkeypox vaccine, according to new data.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports, 71% of monkeypox infections are among Black men but they only received 44.5% of vaccines. Additionally, whites have received 44.7% of vaccine doses but are 12% of the infections.

Dr. Melanie Thompson, an HIV physician and researcher, said in a statement, “We’re not meeting the needs of Black men — and because we’re not meeting the needs of Black men, we’re not meeting the needs of public health as a whole. It shows we need a better strategy to make the vaccine available to Black men.”

Monkeypox can infect anyone but, according to the Department of Public Health, the virus has mainly impacted men who have sex with men.


Click play to listen to the AURN News report from Clay Cane. Follow @claycane & @aurnonline for more.

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