Second Dose Monkeypox Vaccine Eligibility to 28-Day Interval; 50,000 New Appointments Open

Yesterday, 50,000 new first and second dose appointments for the monkeypox vaccine were made available to the public for dates between September 17 and October 6.

The city will also expand the eligibility for vaccinations to people who are under 18 and meet all other criteria.

“We feel confident that we now have enough supply of vaccine to meet current demand, and are comfortable lowering the window of time between first and second doses,” said Dr. Ashwin Vasan, New York City health commissioner. “We know that this provides much deserved peace of mind to New Yorkers who have bravely faced this outbreak.”

Earlier this month, New York City announced the first second dose strategy which was to give the second dose 10 weeks after the first one, a policy that was to “ensure adequate supply and capacity for administration of vaccines to all eligible New Yorkers who needed their first and second doses,” according to the city.

The city now says there is enough supply to meet the demand and is changing the 10 week wait to receive the second dose to a 28 day wait.

“Over these many months, they have adapted to the vaccine supply challenges and have successfully slowed the spread of this virus,” said Vasan.

Those who have received the first dose between July 24 and Sept. 8 will receive a notification about scheduling an appointment for a second dose.

The city is also expanding eligibility requirements to include people under 18-years-old. Previously, the city opened up appointments to those who were older than 18-years-old, identified as a man, non-binary person or gender non-conforming person who have sex with men and people of any gender and sexual orientation who engage in sex work and survival sex.

The new eligibility to New Yorkers under the age of 18 years old will, according to the Health Department “ensure that age is less of a barrier to New Yorkers who need vaccination”.

The caveat is minors who wish to be vaccinated must have parental, guardian or legal custodian consent. The exception to the rule is if a minor is married, a parent, pregnant or in the military.

Consent for a 16 or 17-year-old can be given by a parent in person, written statement or by phone, at the time of the appointment. For those 15 years old or younger, an adult caregiver must accompany the minor and provide consent by phone at the time of the appointment or by written statement.

Visit the NYC MPX page for more information.