More than 1,800 monkeypox cases had been reported in California as of Aug. 10, and the rapidly rising infection rate is alarming many medical experts. LGBTQ activists and some healthcare professionals have criticized the federal response and are advocating for increased access to information, testing and vaccines.
Vaccine access remains problematic, despite public health emergency declarations by the World Health Organization last month and since then by several cities, US states, and the federal government.
Out in the Bay’s Eric Jansen got some practical advice and political insights from Dr. Susan Philip, Health Officer for the San Francisco Department of Public Health, and Paul Aguilar, chair of the Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club's HIV Caucus. They spoke on a recent edition of NPR station KALW’s show State of The Bay that Jansen guest-hosted. We present a lightly edited version of that conversation.
