U.S. will stretch monkeypox vaccine supply with smaller doses

WASHINGTON — U.S. health officials authorized a plan Tuesday to stretch the nation’s limited supply of monkeypox vaccine by giving people just a fifth of the usual dose, citing research suggesting that the reduced amount is about as effective.

The so-called dose-sparing approach also calls for administering the Jynneos vaccine with an injection just under the skin rather than into deeper tissue — a practice that may rev up the immune system better. Recipients would still get two shots spaced four weeks apart.

The highly unusual step is a stark acknowledgment that the U.S. lacks the supplies needed to vaccinate everyone seeking protection from the rapidly spreading virus.

FILE - A man holds a sign urging increased access to the monkeypox vaccine during a protest in San Francisco, July 18, 2022. On Tuesday, August 9, 2022, U.S. health officials authorized a new monkeypox vaccination strategy designed to stretch limited supplies by allowing health professionals to vaccinate up to five people — instead of one — with each vial. (Haven Daley/)

That includes 1.6 million to 1.7 million Americans considered by federal officials to be at highest risk from the disease, primarily men with HIV or men who have a higher risk of contracting it. Vaccinating that group would require about three times more full doses than the roughly 1.1 million that officials have made available.

The White House’s monkeypox response coordinator, Robert Fenton, said the plan would help the U.S. “stay ahead of the virus.”

“It’s safe, it’s effective, and it will significantly scale the volume of vaccine doses available for communities across the country,” Fenton told reporters.

FILE - Registered pharmacist Sapana Patel holds a bottle of Monkeypox vaccine at a Pop-Up Monkeypox vaccination site on Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, in West Hollywood, Calif. (Richard Vogel/)

Officials announced a separate determination Tuesday that allows the Food and Drug Administration to expedite its review of medical products or new uses for them, such as the dose-sparing technique for Jynneos.

The FDA authorized the new approach for adults 18 and older who are at high risk of monkeypox infection. The agency said that younger people can also get the vaccine if they are deemed high risk, though they should receive the traditional injection.

The announcement represents an about-face from last month, when the FDA and other agencies repeatedly stressed that two full vaccine doses were necessary for adequate protection.

But regulators now point to a 2015 study showing that vaccination with a fifth of the traditional dose generated a robust immune-system response comparable to that of the full dose. About 94% of people receiving the smaller dose had adequate levels of virus-fighting antibodies, compared with 98% of those receiving the full dose, according to the study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

FILE - A registered nurse prepares a dose of a Monkeypox vaccine at the Salt Lake County Health Department Thursday, July 28, 2022, in Salt Lake City. (Rick Bowmer/)

U.S. officials have shipped more than 617,000 full vaccine doses to state and local health departments and plan to distribute an additional 380,000 in the coming weeks. So far, it’s been recommended for people who have already been exposed to monkeypox or are likely to get it due to recent sexual contact in areas where the virus is spreading.