Boston health officials to offer residents mpox vaccines at Pride event, amid uptick in cases

Boston Public Health Commission and Massachusetts Department of Public Health officials are encouraging "at-risk" individuals — including gay and bisexual men — to get vaccinated for mpox.

There is no widespread public health threat from the virus at this time, but health officials said they're monitoring an uptick in cases in the city and nationwide. More than 500 cases of mpox were reported this year in the U.S. as of May 4, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Mpox is a viral illness that spreads primarily through close, often intimate, contact, according to the city's public health commission. It also can spread through extensive contact with surfaces or materials, such as clothing or bed linens, used by an infected person.

Mpox does not spread through incidental contact, like brushing up against someone on a crowded train car or shopping in the same store.

Symptoms include:

Kayty Himmelstein, medical director for the city commission's infectious disease bureau, told WBUR that while mpox disproportionally impacts members of the LGBTQ community, anyone can contract it.

"We do want to emphasize that really anybody can get mpox, the virus does not discriminate," Himmelstein said. "... It's just spread through close skin-to-skin contact."

Himmelstein said the rashes that form from the disease can look quite different from person to person: "Pimples, blisters, ulcers. It can look lots of different ways and it can form on any part of the body."

Officials recommend people who might have mpox seek medical attention immediately, avoid contact with others and pets and abstain from sexual activity. In severe cases, the disease can create life-threatening complications.

The mpox vaccine requires two doses, given 28 days apart, and it's most effective two weeks after the second dose is administered, officials said.

"The best way individuals can protect themselves from mpox is by getting vaccinated and avoiding physical and sexual contact with anyone who has a new rash or sores,” said Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, the city's public health commissioner, said in a statement.

The city will offer mpox vaccinations at the City Hall Pride flag-raising ceremony at on June 1 at 1 p.m.

In a statement, Jullieanne Lee, executive director of the city's LGBTQIA2S+ Advancement office, encouraged people who may be at risk to consider getting the vaccine and said the Pride pop-up inoculation effort will help "ensure our communities have access to accurate information and affirming care."

Additional clinics will be hosted throughout the summer, city health officials said.

Vaccinations are also available at Mass General Hospital, Boston Medical Center and Fenway Health. Here's a full list of mpox vaccine locations in Massachusetts.