Monkeypox shots still limited as Bay Area cases grow

Monkeypox cases have roughly doubled in some Bay Area counties in the last week as anxious residents snap up the limited supply of vaccine and many others are turned away.

Cases are now past the 200 mark across six Bay Area counties, with San Francisco leading the pack with the majority of cases and Santa Clara and Alameda counties reporting a few dozen. All three counties are offering the vaccine with varied requirements and eligibility.

In Santa Clara County, residents as of Tuesday are able to make appointments if they have had direct contact with someone with the virus, attended an event where someone tested positive with monkeypox or are engaging in sexual activities within the LGBTQ community. Previously, the shot was invitation-only.

But the newly eligible residents may find their vaccinations hard to come by. On Wednesday, the county held a vaccine clinic in San Jose with 190 slots, and it was fully booked. So far, Santa Clara County has received a mere 1,628 doses. The county is keeping some for its own distribution while also giving out supplies to local hospitals.

“With our initial vaccine allocation from the state, we really focused on the people who had known direct physical contact,” said Santa Clara County Deputy Health Officer Dr. George Han. “Now we’ve opened it up to serve people who are at high risk of getting monkeypox and who haven’t necessarily been exposed yet.”

Monkeypox has not been linked to any fatalities in the U.S., but the virus causes rashes and lesions that can be extraordinarily painful.

Meanwhile, in San Francisco, where multiple local and state officials from the mayor to state senators have been pleading with the federal government over the last few days for more shots, the city has received just under 8,000 out of a request of 35,000.

As of Wednesday afternoon, both county health departments in Santa Clara and San Francisco said they do not know when their next shipment will be. Alameda County’s vaccine eligibility is more restrictive than San Francisco and Santa Clara. The county requires an individual to have had recent exposure to someone who tested positive for the virus, attendance at an event where exposure may have occurred or proof of working in a high-risk medical setting.

The limited supply has brought the wrath of San Francisco’s mayor, who heads a city with an especially large LGBTQ community. Public health officials say gay men are especially at risk because of the way the virus is transmitted through sexual contact. The eligibility for a shot is similar to Santa Clara County’s rules, though the city has been advertising various walk-in opportunities that quickly fill up.

“Our LGBTQ community is fighting hard to get more vaccines and our community partners are doing everything possible to educate the public and deliver the very limited vaccines we do have,” Mayor London Breed wrote in a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra made public on Wednesday. “But they are frustrated and I share their frustration.”

On Wednesday morning at 8 a.m., a line of about 75 people formed in front of Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital’s Building 30 and snaked north up Potrero Ave. Some even set up camping chairs in the line. But less than two hours after the hospital opened its doors, the health department announced on Twitter it had run out of doses.

Some were lucky enough to get the shot just before the supply went dry.

Elvis Zavaleta, of San Francisco, stood in a parking lot at Zuckerberg General alongside his boyfriend, Memo, late Wednesday morning with vaccine paperwork in hand. Zavaleta received his shot on Tuesday through a walk-in appointment and on Wednesday had helped his boyfriend, who doesn’t speak English, secure a dose. He expressed gratitude toward the hospital for providing the vaccine.

“We want to stop the virus,” said Zavaleta, “and not let it affect our community like HIV did. It’s a good thing we’re able to have access to this.” Zavaleta, who works in the service industry, said he’s had no side effects from the shot so far. Not even a sore arm.

“It was super easy and quick,” he said. “Super simple.”

On Wednesday, public health departments across the Bay Area reported a rise in monkeypox infections, and in some counties cases are more than doubling compared to a week ago.

San Francisco’s cases have jumped from 68 on July 13 to 141 on Wednesday, Santa Clara County from nine to 23 now, and Alameda County from 17 to 32. Contra Costa, San Mateo and Marin counties are still reporting low single-digit cases.

UC Berkeley epidemiologist Dr. John Swartzberg said current case counts are probably 50% of what truly exists within the community since testing is still beefing up, a phenomenon that also occurred during the early days of the COVID pandemic. As testing becomes more widespread and turnaround times for results shorten, the overall numbers will pop up, said Swartzberg.

Han concurred with Swartzberg’s testing analysis.

“We’ve been seeing a steady increase since the last several weeks,” said Han. “We did expect this to happen.”