Monkeypox virus particles, illustration. Monkeypox virus is found near rainforests in Central and West Africa and causes disease in humans and monkeys, although its natural hosts are rodents.
HONOLULU (KITV4) —The Hawaii State Department of Health (DOH) will join the Hawaii Health and Harm Reduction Center and other members of the community in addressing ongoing concerns with stigma and bias regarding monkeypox. Subjects will include up-to-date information about the virus, reducing stigma felt by the trans and LGBQ community, and current public health efforts.
The “Community Matters! Safety over Stigma,” event will be held online Thursday, August 11, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. Register here.
Panel participants include Dr. Christina Wang, DnP, Medical Director at Hawaiʻi Health and Harm Reduction Center; Tim McCormick, Director, Harm Reduction Services Branch, Hawaiʻi Department of Health; Thaddeus Pham, Co-Chair, State of Hawaiʻi Sexual and Gender Minority Work Group; Walter Enriquez, Jr., CEO, Gay Island Guide
Last Thursday, the Biden Administration declared the monkeypox outbreak a national health emergency. In terms of the overall risk of monkeypox in Hawaii, DOH states on its website: “Based on the current information available, the risk to most Hawaii residents remains low.”
DOH will offer vaccines to those at risk of contracting monkeypox at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center on Sunday, August 14, on an appointment basis. Registration is now open online. Another vaccine clinic at the Blaisdell Center will be held on Sunday, August 20. Vaccines are also available at community partner sites on Oahu and the Neighbor Islands.
Those who are currently eligible for the JYNNEOS monkeypox vaccine include Hawaii residents 18 and older who meet one of the following criteria:
1) Contact to a confirmed case(s): Direct contact with a person with a monkeypox infection in the last 14 days
2) Post exposure prophylaxis++: Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men and transgender individuals with high-risk intimate contact in the last 14 days in venues (sex-on-premises events, bathhouses, sex clubs, or sex workers) or area (including Hawaii) where monkeypox is known to be spreading
