Ever since the 2022 global outbreak of mpox, the number of cases has died down in the United States, but Fulton County officials warn that mpox hasn’t fully left Atlanta. At a Fulton County Board of Health meeting last week, the county’s director of epidemiology, Sasha Smith, stated that mpox is one of the diseases […]
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Mpox Could Surge Again in Georgia, Community Leaders Warn
Black community leaders who were on the front lines of Georgia’s mpox response are heeding the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s warning about a possible resurgence. The CDC released a health alert on May 15, warning that mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, could resurface in drastic numbers as people gather for summer festivities. The […]
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State Gives Out 4,000 Monkeypox Vaccines at Black Pride, Expands Eligibility
The Georgia Department of Public Health says it was able to distribute more than 4,000 monkeypox vaccine doses to people during Atlanta Black Pride weekend. Nearly half of those — 48% — went to Black people. The state’s public health department participated in President Joe Biden’s initiative to get extra monkeypox vaccines to certain states […]
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Monkeypox Vaccine Distribution Is Inequitable, but Experts See Efforts Working
For health advocates in Georgia, the monkeypox outbreak has reignited discussion on racial inequity. Whereas Black people make up nearly 80% of cases in the state, they represent less than half of the vaccine doses. The state has distributed more than 17,000 vaccine doses, which have gone to people who are sexually active and have […]
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How Stigma Affects Public Health Response to Monkeypox
Rig Rush is frustrated. The global marketing director with Impulse Group — an organization providing HIV/AIDS education for gay men — says it has been hard to watch state and federal health departments respond to the worldwide monkeypox outbreak. Like COVID-19, the vaccine and testing rollout in Georgia has been slow. And there’s concern that […]