Minister Ernst Kuipers of Health reported this in a letter to the House of Representatives. Initially, a group of approximately 2000 people will receive a vaccine that reduces the risk of infection with the disease.
32,000 people
It concerns men from Amsterdam who have sex with men and are taking part in a trial with PrEP, a prevention tool against HIV. These men may be at a higher risk of monkey pox infection due to varying sexual contacts. According to Kuipers, a broader group of about 32,000 people will be vaccinated later. “The GGDs are working on the broader roll-out, which also includes the registration of the vaccination,” the minister writes.
Most people who receive a shot are offered two doses. There is four weeks between the first and second injection. If you have already had a vaccination against smallpox, one dose is enough. RIVM previously reported that the number of available vaccines is ‘limited’. There are currently about 70,000 vaccines available.
The number of people becoming infected with monkey pox continues to grow. At the moment, more than 15,000 infections have been reported worldwide and 712 confirmed cases have been confirmed in the Netherlands so far. In the past week, 163 new cases have come to light. That is the fastest increase since the virus appeared in the Netherlands in April.
Pain and discomfort
According to Kuipers, almost all cases still occur in men who have sex, or intimate contact, with men. In general, the disease is not serious, although an infection can sometimes cause a lot of pain and discomfort. In the Netherlands, the monkeypox outbreak has not led to hospitalizations.
“It cannot be ruled out that as the virus spreads, the virus will also spread further outside the group of men who have sex with men.” According to Kuipers, one child of primary school age has been diagnosed with the virus and also five women.
Virologist Marion Koopmans of Erasmus MC told RTL Nieuws this week that ‘the number of cases is increasing more than I would like’. “You wish it deflected.” According to Koopmans, only warning and quarantine advice have insufficient effect. “More is needed, so vaccination. But vaccinating everyone who wants it is not possible.”
‘No perspective’
And Soa Aids Nederland thinks that is a shame, says a spokesperson. “Men who are currently not receiving PrEP or are not on the waiting list have no prospect of a vaccine at the moment. It needs to be tackled much more broadly and it also has to go much faster.”
But according to the Ministry of Health, that is not yet the case. “We follow the advice of the RIVM, which focuses on vaccinating this target group. More vaccines are not necessary for the time being,” says a spokesperson.
The United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) is discussing the monkeypox outbreak today. The virus may be declared an international public health hazard. That is the highest warning level. According to Kuipers, if the WHO decides that this will now apply to the monkey pox virus, it will be ‘mainly a signal that the situation worldwide is worrying’. “This has no direct consequences for policy in the Netherlands.”