To help combat the spread of monkeypox, D.C. city health officials will hold three monkeypox vaccination clinics on Friday, the agency said Wednesday.
Walk-up vaccinations on Fridays will be available from noon until 8 p.m. at the following locations:
- 3640 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE (Ward 8)
- 7530 Georgia Ave. NW (Ward 4)
- 1900 I St. NW (Ward 2)
The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that D.C. has the highest number of confirmed monkeypox cases in the region, with more than 250.
“Many residents, east of the river and even west of the river, we know that there are income inequalities, we know that there are health disparities,” Ward 7 ANC Commissioner Kelvin Brown told WTOP.
One of the new monkeypox vaccine sites added for August is in Ward 8.
“This, in my opinion, should’ve been one of the first sites,” Brown said.
Some on social media have questioned whether the digital divide may also limit access to the vaccine.
“We need to call every district resident with an automated message that says this is the information that I need you to pay close attention to,” Brown said. “We have to involve our hyperlocal officials, such as myself … the civic associations.”
To be eligible for the vaccine, a person must be a D.C. resident with proof of residency, at least 18 years old, and “gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men and have had multiple (more than one) or any anonymous sexual partners in the last 14 days,” D.C. Health said.
Transgender women or nonbinary persons assigned male at birth who have sex with men, sex workers, and staff at establishments where sexual activity may occur (including bathhouses, saunas and sex clubs) are also eligible.
Vaccinations are confidential. Those unable to attend the walk-up appointments may still preregister for a vaccine appointment online on the health department’s website.
