The Member States of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) held a special session of its Directing Council to consider a resolution to address the outbreak, which includes support for equitable access to the vaccine for populations most at risk.
On July 23, 2022, the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. The current outbreak began in mid-May and has so far affected 89 countries around the world.
In the Americas, more than 10,000 monkeypox infections have been reported in 24 countries since the start of the outbreak, representing 38% of global cases.
“The declaration of a public health emergency of international importance came with detailed recommendations both for countries and territories that have not detected any cases and for those that already have imported cases or transmission in their communities,” said PAHO Director Carissa F.Etienne.
“We believe that when the recommended measures are applied properly, we can stop the transmission of the monkeypox virus,” he said.
These recommendations, which PAHO is working with Member States to put into practice, include risk communication and the participation of affected communities, early detection and surveillance, treatment and isolation of patients, and follow-up of the contacts.
However, “post- or pre-exposure vaccination could be a complement to other measures,” added the PAHO Director.
During the session, Dr. Etienne pointed out that there is currently only one third-generation monkeypox vaccine in the world, and it is made by a single producer.
Although supplies of these vaccines are extremely limited, PAHO has entered into initial negotiations with their producer.
In view of this, the adopted resolution requests the Director of PAHO to facilitate a coordinated response and take measures to support its Member States to have access to this vaccine through the organization’s Revolving Fund. Likewise, it requests that the countries of the Americas region continue to recognize PAHO and its Revolving Fund as the most appropriate strategic regional technical mechanism to provide equitable access to this and other vaccines.
The recommendations of the PAHO Technical Advisory Group on Vaccine-Preventable Diseases, as well as those of the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee, convened by the WHO, stipulate that countries should prioritize vaccines for specific groups, as well as close contacts of a confirmed case, in order to maximize the impact of the vaccines considering the limited supply.
Press release