A SEXUAL health charity has said the UK Government’s decision to go against the advice of health experts and decline the purchase of additional monkeypox vaccines is “concerning and short-sighted”.
An investigation by The Financial Times revealed that the Health Secretary Therese Coffey chose not to procure 70,000 extra doses of the vaccine on September 21, going against the advice of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
It was reported that Coffey did not believe the transaction represented value for money.
However, health experts and charities have warned that the failure to purchase extra doses could leave the entirety of the UK badly prepared for a resurgence of the disease.
Ceri Smith, head of policy at HIV and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust, said: “We sincerely hope this isn’t true as it would be concerning and shortsighted.
“The Government cannot afford to be complacent about monkeypox if we are to prevent the virus becoming endemic in the UK.
“Not tackling the outbreak would exacerbate the health inequalities experienced by gay and bisexual men and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM).
“It’s high time for the Government to get a grip on monkeypox. Vaccination is vital to this – but we need to secure them while the opportunity is there. We will urgently raise this with the Health Secretary.”
Cases of the disease are decreasing in the UK, with demand for the vaccine not surpassing the number available in Scotland.
However, the World Health Organisation has designated monkeypox a “public health emergency of international concern” like Covid-19 and Ebola, with studies underway that seek to understand its transmission patterns and the potential for further outbreaks.
Dr Chase Ledin, a teaching fellow at the Usher Institute at the University of Edinburgh, said the UK Government’s strategy could disadvantage those requiring vaccination in Scotland.
He told The National: “The UK Health Secretary Therese Coffey’s decision to side-step purchasing additional vaccines to prevent serious illness due to monkeypox exposure is a grave gesture.
“It signals an unwillingness to uphold established preventative care measures set out by UKHSA and health boards across the devolved nations.”
We sincerely hope this isn’t true as it would be concerning and shortsighted in terms of the UK’s ongoing #monkeypox response. We need to secure vaccines while the opportunity is there. We will urgently raise this with the Health Secretary.https://t.co/xEOoJOVVaL
— Terrence Higgins Trust (@THTorguk) October 1, 2022
He said that while the latest UKHSA epidemiological overview found that health boards in the devolved nations were not at significant risk of being unduly impacted by Coffey’s decision, the UK Government’s strategy continually failed to put in place additional resources for monkeypox prevention.
At present, local sexual clinics are expected to deliver monkeypox vaccines alongside routine services.
“The existing vaccine delivery system in Scotland relies on existing health records held by sexual health clinics to determine eligibility for the vaccine.
“The existing criteria places gay and bisexual men, specifically GBMSM who take HIV-PrEP, at the top of the list.
“Whilst this is necessary given the prevalence of monkeypox amongst GBMSM, this selection criteria risks marginalising populations who do not regularly visit sexual health clinics (ie they go to their GPs for sexual health services).
“To that end, the decision not to put in place additional resources for monkeypox prevention means that certain populations in Scotland with existing access to treatment will be disadvantaged in small ways whilst other populations without access to routine services will be more greatly disadvantaged.”
Ledin added: “The UK Health Secretary must reconsider the funding and delivery of resources to ensure that existing sexual health services are not pushed to the breaking point, leaving individuals to fend for themselves during the ongoing monkeypox crisis.”
A spokesperson for the UK government said the UK has “enough doses of the monkeypox vaccine to offer everybody eligible two doses”.
They added: “We acted immediately to tackle the spread of monkeypox, moving early to secure 150,000 vaccines amid global shortages and rapidly deploying jabs to those most at risk,”
“While cases are falling in the UK, we are not complacent and we continue to encourage people to remain vigilant and take up the offer of a vaccine if eligible.
“We continue to monitor the situation and decisions about future supply will be made and communicated in the usual way.”
