What are the side effects of the monkeypox vaccine? Your California question answered

As California continues to grapple with yet another viral disease, monkeypox, residents have a lot of questions surrounding the newest vaccine health officials are urging some to roll up their sleeves to get.

A Bee reader reached out to the California Utility Team curious about the side effects of the monekypox vaccine and when it will be available, along with how to protect yourself against the disease.

Here’s what we found:

Monkeypox vaccine side effects

The monkeypox vaccine, once injected into the body, produces side effects similar to the flu shot or even the COVID-19 vaccine.

The monkeypox vaccine induces “minor reactions,” Sacramento County Public Health wrote on its website. Symptoms include:

• Mild fever
• Tiredness
• Swollen glands
• Redness and itching where the vaccine was injected

How do I protect myself from monkeypox?

While some people are at higher risk of contracting monkeypox, anyone can become infected, so it’s important to know the symptoms of the disease.

The virus spreads through contact with bodily fluids and respiratory droplets, according to Sacramento County Public Health. But it’s not easily spread, the county wrote, and droplets “do not travel more than a few feet.“

Here’s how to stay safe, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

• Avoid skin-to-skin contact with people who have rashes that look like monekypox.
• Don’t touch objects that a person with monkeypox has used.
• Wash your hands often or use a alcohol-based sanitizer.

Am I eligible for the vaccine?

Sacramento County Public Health Department recommends men who have sex with men and transgender people who meet one or more of these factors should get vaccinated against monkeypox:

• Those who have tested positive for a sexually transmitted infection in the last two months.
• Those who have had more than two sexual partners in the past three weeks.
• Those who visited or worked at a commercial sex venue in the last three weeks.
• Those who have had sex within the last three weeks with others they do not know.

The California Department of Public Health is also committed to “reducing stigma among the LGBTQ community, which has been singled out and treated unfairly because of this outbreak,” said Dr. Tomás Aragón, the director of the California Department of Public Health, according to a previous Bee report.

“No single individual or community is to blame for the spread of any virus,” said the state’s public health officer.

Where can I get vaccinated in Sacramento?

Monkeypox vaccines are scarce.

When Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency Monday in response to the spread of the disease, it meant a few things: more vaccines, testing and education surrounding the disease.

Depending on the number of reported monekypox cases and number of at-risk residents in your area, the state will allocate vaccines to your local health department in the coming days and weeks, Newsom’s office said in a Monday evening statement declaring a state of emergency in response to monkeypox.

“We’ll continue to work with the federal government to secure more vaccines, raise awareness about reducing risk, and stand with the LGBTQ community fighting stigmatization,” Newsom stated.

Sacramento LGBT Community Center in downtown Sacramento has been dispensing a limited supply of the monkeypox vaccine to eligible residents for the last several weeks, but the supply ran out out Monday, the center wrote on its Facebook page.

Those eligible for the vaccine can make an appointment with Pucci’s Pharmacy at 3257 Folsom Blvd.

“Additional clinics will be scheduled as vaccine supply increases,” Sacramento County Public Health wrote on its website.

How many people have been infected with monkeypox?

Monkeypox isn’t new.

Before this year’s outbreak, the first human case of monkeypox was detected in 1970, according to the CDC.

The first California monekypox case was discovered on May 24 in a resident who recently returned from international travel.

Roughly 800 cases of monkeypox have been confirmed in California, the second-highest count behind New York (1,617), according to the CDC’s monkeypox U.S. cases map, last updated Tuesday.

The U.S. recorded 6,326 cases, with zero cases detected in Montana and Wyoming, according to the CDC map.

Sacramento County has a total of 52 monkeypox cases as of Wednesday, according to the Sacramento County Department of Health Services.

This story was originally published August 3, 2022 at 11:45 AM.