PHX Reporter

The Maricopa County Department of Public Health will host a monkeypox vaccine clinic Sept. 1, after the county booked 1,000 appointments in three hours for the Aug. 25 clinic.

According to a story by Arizona Family, the county has posted a survey to gauge public participation, which the health department said has already been completed by more than 10,000 people. In addition to the survey, the public health office has released information on who is eligible for the vaccine.

“It’s important to remind everyone that the way that monkeypox is transmitted is close contact of skin-to-skin contact, with intimate skin contact,” Dr. Nick Staab, an epidemiologist with Maricopa County. “If you’re not having that kind of contact with others that you’re not familiar with, then you’re really at low risk for monkeypox at this time. You do not need to be vaccinated.”

The Arizona Department of Health Services (AZDHS) said that the federal government determines how many vaccines each city gets.

“We’ve been working with our federal partners to identify the allocations that are determined for our state,” said Carla Berg, AZDHS deputy director. “To identify how many of the limited vaccines come to Arizona, the federal government is using a formula around how many monkeypox cases we currently have, and the individuals that we have that would most benefit from that vaccine. We’re then allocating to our local health departments, leveraging that model.”

Those on tribal lands, such as the Navajo Nation, are also staying vigilant for potential monkeypox infections, according to AZ Family.

The Navajo Department of Health and the Navajo Epidemiology Center recently confirmed its first case of monkeypox in McKinley County, New Mexico. President Jonathan Nez said the nation has a team of officials prepared to battle the disease, with the help of the federal government.

“Through these efforts, we’ve been able to secure doses of the monkeypox vaccines and they will be available to the Navajo people soon,” Nez said. “As cases of monkeypox began to spread across the country and into the southwest, we knew we had to prepare. Just as we saw with COVID-19, it came to a point where every region surrounding the Navajo Nation was affected.”