Monkeypox: County Declares Local State Of Emergency Tuesday

LOS ANGELES, CA — County authorities on Tuesday ratified a local emergency declaration for monkeypox just one day after Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in California for the contagious viral disease spreading quickly in the Golden State.

Board chair Holly J. Mitchell released a proclamation Monday declaring the existence of a local emergency as California reached nearly 800 Monkeypox cases, according to Mitchell's proclamation. Los Angeles County has identified 400 monkeypox cases so far — nearly the double the amount from a week ago.

The Board of Supervisors ratified the declaration Tuesday with a unanimous vote.

Ratifying Mitchell's emergency proclamation will allow the county to "more effectively respond to monkeypox, accelerate the procurement of vital supplies, seek and utilize mutual aid, and potentially obtain reimbursement and assistance from the State and federal government," according to the motion written by Mitchell.

“This proclamation is critical in helping us get ahead of this virus. By declaring a local emergency, it allows us to cut through the red tape to better dedicate resources and educate residents on how to protect themselves and help stop the spread. It will also allow the County to quickly administer vaccines as more become available and to take the necessary efforts to obtain supplies and enhance outreach and awareness,” Mitchell said in a statement.

Supervisor Janice Hahn wrote on Twitter Monday she supports the emergency declaration.

"I'm hopeful this will help vaccination efforts and ultimately help slow the spread of this virus," Hahn said in a tweet.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger said in a statement the county "needs to draw down all the support available to accelerate the distribution of vaccines and resources to those at risk and suffering from this terrible disease. I will work to ensure we're doing so quickly and efficiently. We don't have any time to waste."

In Los Angeles County, monkeypox vaccines are available to people confirmed by the Department of Public Health to have had high- or immediate- risk contact with a known monkeypox patient, and to people who attended an event or visited a venue where they was a high risk of exposure to a confirmed case. Those people are generally identified through county contact-tracing efforts, and they will be notified by the county.

Shots are also available for gay and bisexual men and transgender people with a diagnosis of rectal gonorrhea or early syphilis within the past year.

Also eligible for the shots are gay or bisexual men or transgender people who are on HIV pre-exposure prophylaxix, or PrEP, or who attended or worked at a commercial sex venue or other venue where they had anonymous sex or sex with multiple partners — such as at a sauna, bathhouse or sex club — in the past 21 days.

Eligibility was expanded Tuesday to include gay or bisexual men or transgender people aged 18 and older who have had multiple or anonymous sex partners in the past 14 days.

People who believe they fall into any of the criteria can contact their health care provider to see if that provider can administer the vaccine.

A public vaccination site will open Wednesday in West Hollywood for pre-registered and eligible residents at the West Hollywood Library Community Meeting Room, 647 N San Vicente Boulevard. The clinic will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. by appointment only.

Visit the public health department's website for more information.

City News Service contributed to this report.