Senator Rivera on the Biden Administration Declaring MPV/Monkeypox a Public Health Emergency

 

“The Biden administration finally listened to our call to declare MPV/Monkeypox a public health emergency. Now our efforts to contain the virus should ramp up quickly, especially in regards to adequate and equitable vaccine distribution and accelerating access to treatment options for MPV.  New York State and New York City continue to have the highest number of confirmed cases anywhere in the country, with approximately 25% of all cases in the U.S. being in New York. Our distribution of vaccine supply from the federal government has not corresponded to the number of cases we have. It is critical that the federal government change its allocation plans to ensure New York is receiving a sufficient share of vaccine doses to proactively stop the spread of this disease. Once again, I urge the federal government to expedite the availability of medical regimens to aid in the containment and treatment of MPV/monkeypox. As my colleagues and I wrote in a recent letter to Secretary Becerra, it is critical that we listen to medical experts and remove administrative barriers to available treatment options to provide prompt care to those who have been affected by this virus.”

NY State Senator Gustavo Rivera