CDPHE opens appointments for second dose of monkeypox vaccine, expands eligibility criteria

COLORADO (KRDO) -- The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is making several updates to its monkeypox vaccine response.

The department is now opening appointments for second doses of the vaccine, expanding eligibility criteria, and transitioning to an automated system for scheduling appointments.

Second doses are now available to people who received the vaccine at least 28 days ago. Using patient-provided information, the CDPHE is now contacting people who have received the first dose to let them know the second dose is available.

Eligibility requirements to receive the monkeypox vaccine have also been expanded. The updated eligibility requirements are:

• Anyone (any sexual orientation or gender identity) who has had close physical contact with someone who has had monkeypox in the last 14 days.
• Anyone (any sexual orientation or gender identity) who: 
  • Has had multiple sexual partners in the last 14 days, or 
  • Has had sexual partners they did not previously know in the last 14 days, or
  • Has had close physical contact with other people in a venue where anonymous or group sex may occur in the last 14 days, or
  • Was diagnosed with gonorrhea or syphilis in the past three months, or
  • Who already uses or is eligible for HIV PrEP (medication to prevent HIV, e.g. Truvada or Descovy or Apretude), or
  • Who engages in commercial and/or transactional sex (e.g. sex in exchange for money, shelter, food, and other goods or needs).
• Anyone (any sexual orientation or gender identity) identified by public health as a known high-risk contact of someone who has monkeypox.

The CDPHE said it will continue to revisit the criteria for the monkeypox vaccination and eligibility may continue to change as the supply from the federal government increases.

Another change to the state's response to monkeypox is the CDPHE is now using a vaccine appointment scheduling process on comassvax.org. The secure Google form that CDPHE had been using since June now redirects Coloradans seeking a vaccine appointment to comassvax.org. Coloradans can book first and second-dose appointments at this site.

According to the CDPHE, more than 10,000 doses of the monkeypox vaccine have been administered in Colorado to date.

In August, the department published a monkeypox vaccine data dashboard and a monkeypox data dashboard to provide Coloradans with the latest information on the state’s vaccine administration and information on the monkeypox outbreak.

Monkeypox may begin with flu-like symptoms that can include fever, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes, and exhaustion. Typically, a rash or skin bumps develop within one to three days after the onset of fever, often beginning on the face, then spreading to other parts of the body. Monkeypox can look like syphilis, herpes, blisters, or even acne. In recent cases, additional symptoms have not always occurred before the rash or bumps if they have occurred at all, according to the CDPHE.

For more information on monkeypox, visit cdphe.colorado.gov/monkeypox.