The Department of Health and Human Services said earlier this week that it would make the final 442,000 injections of the initial supply of monkeypox vaccine available earlier than expected. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
In a flash monkeypox report on Thursday, the United States said it would provide an additional 1.8 million doses of Jynneos vaccine from Bavaria North, while the company revealed it would boost its injection production capacity through US contract manufacturer Grand River Aseptic.
The US also said it would provide 50,000 additional doses of TPOXX to Siga, which are used to treat those infected.
The news came amid growing criticism of the government’s response to the outbreak, which was classified as a public health emergency earlier this month. More than 13,500 in the U.S. have been infected, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, accounting for more than one-third of the 39,000 cases reported worldwide.
The new supply of 1.8 million vaccines is in addition to the 1.6 million doses announced in late June that were expected to be in the US by summer.
On Tuesday, the Department of Health and Human Services said it would make the final 442,000 of the original supply available earlier than expected.
Bavarian Nordic has received regulatory approval to manufacture monkeypox at a Danish facility
A new batch of 1.8 million vaccines will be available on Monday next week. The FDA’s decision last week to allow Jynneos to be administered intradermally — between the layers of the skin — has increased the number of doses that can be administered from the vial fivefold. Bavarian Nordic expressed dismay at the ruling, citing a lack of data and safety concerns.
The new supply of TPOXX – which comes on top of the original supply of 20,000 – will start next week, the administration said. States receive allocations based on a formula that includes the number of reported cases and estimates of how many people are considered high-risk.
In July, Bavarian Nordic revealed that it had agreed to provide 2.5 million doses of Jynneos to the U.S., bringing the company’s total supply to the country to 5.5 million with delivery through 2023.
As for Bavarian’s contract with Grand River, CDMO will carry out the filling and completion of the vaccine and start before the end of this year. The technology transfer, which is already underway, is planned for three months instead of the standard nine-month interval, the companies said.