Israel signs deal to procure 10,000 monkeypox vaccines

Health Ministry says 101 men have been infected with disease since first detection in May

By ToI Staff 18 July 2022, 11:09 pm Edit

This 2003 electron microscope image made available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows mature, oval-shaped monkeypox virions, left, and spherical immature virions, right, obtained from a sample of human skin associated with the 2003 prairie dog outbreak. A leading doctor who chairs a World Health Organization expert group described the unprecedented outbreak of the rare disease monkeypox in developed countries as 'a random event' that might be explained by risky sexual behavior at two recent mass events in Europe. (Cynthia S. Goldsmith, Russell Regner/ CDC via AP, File)

The Health Ministry on Monday said it was purchasing thousands of monkeypox vaccines, as total number of cases in the country rose to 101.

The ministry said it signed an agreement a week ago to procure 2,000 doses from the manufacturer that produces “the new generation of vaccine,” which was expanded on Friday to 10,000 doses.

The ministry did not name the company or the vaccine, but according to The New York Times, Jynneos is the only vaccine developed for monkeypox, and it is made by a small Danish company, Bavarian Nordic.

The vaccines are to be delivered in the coming weeks, the ministry said. It added that they would be available to “at-risk” populations first.

Israel reported its first monkeypox case in May, a man who returned from abroad, and communal spread was first detected last month.

As of Monday, 101 men have been infected, the ministry said, though monkeypox usually clears up after two to four weeks, according to the World Health Organization.

The Health Ministry said it was closely monitoring the situation and was in contact with various nations’ health authorities.

“The Health Ministry calls on those who develop a fever or blistering, or have been in close contact with someone suspected of being sick with monkeypox, to speak to a doctor,” the ministry said in a statement.

Israeli health officials have played down the risk of the virus, with a top health official urging calm in a briefing in May and saying the recent cases were not a major risk to public health.