SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KGTV) — In an effort to bolster California’s vaccination effort, Governor Gavin Newsom Monday declared a state of emergency over monkeypox.
According to Newsom’s office, the proclamation will support the effort to seek additional vaccines and boost outreach and education on accessing vaccines and treatments.
“California is working urgently across all levels of government to slow the spread of monkeypox, leveraging our robust testing, contact tracing and community partnerships strengthened during the pandemic to ensure that those most at risk are our focus for vaccines, treatment and outreach,” Newsom said.
The state of emergency allows emergency medical services personnel to administer the monkeypox vaccine.
“The state’s response to monkeypox builds on the infrastructure developed during the COVID-19 pandemic to deploy vaccine clinics and ensure inclusive and targeted outreach in partnership with local and community-based organizations,” Newsom’s office said.
The state has so far received over 61,000 doses of the vaccine.
As of July 28, California expanded its testing capacity to process more than 1,000 tests per week.
