Advertisement

News

Dallas expands monkeypox vaccine eligibility, but some are frustrated at limited access

Dallas County accounts for about 40% of Texas’ cases of the virus

Dallas County residents and public officials are questioning whether the health department’s monkeypox response is strong enough as the virus continues to spread throughout North Texas.

The health department announced this week that it will expand who is eligible to get the monkeypox vaccine to include men who have sex with men who have had multiple or anonymous partners in the last two weeks. The agency received a shipment of just over 5,000 doses of the Jynneos vaccine last week and is waiting to learn when it will receive its next delivery from the state.

But some residents say they’re frustrated that eligibility hasn’t been extended further and that getting answers from the health department has been nearly impossible. County Judge Clay Jenkins tweeted Tuesday that the monkeypox hotline has been inundated with calls and that callers may need to try multiple times to get through to an operator.

Advertisement

The county is working with local partners to increase sites for people to access the vaccine, Jenkins said. Still, Dallas’ attempt at juggling vaccine supply restraints, growing case counts and increasing demand for preemptive vaccinations has been bumpy to say the least.

Breaking News

Get the latest breaking news from North Texas and beyond.

Or with:

“It’s a balance of wanting to maximize our impact. We’re already getting a ton of calls bombarding our system,” said Dr. Philip Huang, the county’s top health official. “So we’re trying to balance that with, what can we handle? And, what can we get out there effectively and quickly?”

Advertisement

The World Health Organization recently declared monkeypox’s spread a global health emergency. The virus, which primarily spreads through skin-to-skin contact, causes flu-like symptoms and a blistery rash that may be located on or near the genitals.

Symptoms usually start within three weeks of exposure to the virus, and the illness typically lasts two-to-four weeks. Monkeypox is rarely fatal, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Dallas County’s vaccine eligibility expansions follow days or weeks after areas such as Houston and Washington, D.C., despite the fact that Dallas accounts for more than 40% of Texas’ 485 cases.

Advertisement

When the latest vaccine shipment came in, Huang was told that the county would likely not receive another delivery until late August or early September, meaning that the health department would have to stretch about 5,000 doses of the two-vaccine regimen – enough for 2,500 people – to last about six weeks.

A faster shipment from the feds has since been announced, making the health department comfortable in expanding vaccine options to more people, although Huang said he doesn’t know exactly when the next delivery will arrive.

The decision to expand eligibility was announced at a monkeypox town hall Monday evening, but County Commissioner Elba Garcia said she heard from Parkland staff on Tuesday morning that they were not aware of the change in eligibility requirements.

Already the spread of monkeypox and lack of vaccines is altering some people’s behavior. David DiMaggio said he’s stopped going to bars so that he won’t risk brushing up against someone who may be unknowingly infected.

The Oak Lawn resident said he has called the county’s hotline several times over the last few days, including Tuesday morning, looking for guidance on when he’ll qualify for the vaccine.

“When I called, the operator said, ‘We aren’t ready to deal with that yet. Call us back tomorrow and the next day and at one point when you call we’ll be ready to handle it,’” DiMaggio said.

David DiMaggio, 27,  said he has called Dallas County's monkeypox hotline several times over...
David DiMaggio, 27, said he has called Dallas County's monkeypox hotline several times over the last few days, including Tuesday morning, looking for guidance on when he’ll qualify for the vaccine.(Elias Valverde II / Staff Photographer)
Advertisement

Every city has different vaccine eligibility requirements, based largely on vaccine supply and how widely the virus is spreading. Houston has a broader definition of high-risk individuals than Dallas that includes people older than 18 that are on HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, which prevents HIV infection.

DiMaggio said the differences in eligibility requirements make it feel like Houston is taking the outbreak more seriously than Dallas. But Huang said Dallas’ definition of who is considered high risk is aimed at impacting the people most likely to get exposed to the virus.

“Many of the people on PrEP may be men who have sex with men who have multiple sex partners, but I’d rather get all of the people who have multiple and anonymous sex partners first before some that may be in monogamous relationships but have a partner who has HIV,” Huang said.

Advertisement

The current monkeypox outbreak in Dallas is primarily spreading among men who have sex with men, although the virus can spread to anyone, regardless of sexual orientation. Monkeypox can spread through any close contact, not just sex, and can even be transmitted through contact with contaminated clothing or bedding.

“Those of us who work in this community, we are being mindful of how we are talking about this,” said Rafael McDonnell, communications and advocacy manager at Resource Center, an LGBTQ resource center. “It’s a virus like the flu, like COVID-19, that doesn’t have anything to do with who somebody is or who they love.”

For Addison resident Joey Benitez, the conversations surrounding monkeypox feel reminiscent of conversations he heard growing up during the AIDS epidemic. He’s worried that, because there aren’t enough vaccine doses, the virus will spread more than is necessary.

“People are worried, and I’m glad they’re worried. It could be too little too late because of the way we’re only giving the vaccine to people who have been exposed,” he said.

Advertisement

Benitez, like DiMaggio, has called the health department repeatedly in an attempt to get a vaccine, even though he doesn’t yet qualify.

“You bump into people in a crowd or people hug you, and I’m scared that I’m going to somehow accidentally get it that way,” he said. “I would much rather be safe than sorry.”

The county is at the whim of the federal government in its quest for more vaccinations. Jenkins said local officials have been in contact with the White House to try and secure 10,000 more doses of the vaccine.

At Tuesday’s Commissioners Court meeting, Huang asked commissioners if he could move $100,000 from its preventative health division to respond to the monkeypox outbreak. Commissioners unanimously approved the request.

Advertisement

The funds will help cover investigating, monitoring, advertising and staffing.

“You’ve heard how difficult it is to retain staff, and our staff is at the epicenter of what has been going on in the last two years,” Huang said. “It has been incredibly stressful.”

Commissioner J.J. Koch asked Huang whether the health department was considering closing businesses with high transmission rates. Huang did not commit to doing so.

Advertisement

“If we see things that will slow down transmission, we will certainly do that, like practicing distancing and not having skin to skin contact. That’s what we need,” Huang said.

Staff Writer Josephine Peterson contributed to this report.

Related Stories
View More