August 19, 2022 – St. John’s, NL: Eastern Health is providing the Imvamune vaccine for the Monkeypox virus to eligible individuals starting today. This is based on the epidemiology of the outbreak in Canada, and following the lead of other jurisdictions in the country. Eligible individuals include:
- Two-spirit people, transgender people, and cisgender males who self-identify as belonging to the gay, bisexual, queer, and men who have sex with men community, and meet at least one of the following criteria:
- Have had sex with two or more partners in the last 90 days, or are planning to do so;
- Have received a diagnosis of a sexually transmitted infection in the last six months;
- Have attended, worked, or volunteered in venues or other locations for sexual contact within the past 90 days or may be planning to do so, whether in or outside of the province.
The vaccine will also be offered to sexual contacts of individuals in the above eligibility groups as well as to people who engage in, or plan to engage in, sex work.
Individuals who meet the above criteria and are interested in receiving the vaccine are asked to contact a Public Health office. Contact information for Public Health offices within the Eastern Health region can be found at www.easternhealth.ca/contactus/#Community. Public Health staff will collect information and provide an appointment for individuals to receive the vaccine.
If individuals believe that they have been exposed and/or are experiencing symptoms, they should contact their health care provider or call 811 to arrange for further assessment and testing and to speak with a registered nurse 24 hours, seven days a week. Please note that, depending on appointment availability, it could take up to three days to see the 811 NP.
Eastern Health will continue to communicate as additional vaccine information becomes available. For more information, please visit www.gov.nl.ca/hcs/monkeypox/.
– 30-