Top representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be named by President Joe Biden to serve as the White House coordinators in the fight against the spreading monkeypox outbreak.
According to the White House, Mr. Biden will declare on Tuesday that Robert Fenton, who assisted in directing FEMA’s mass vaccination campaign against COVID-19 as the organization’s interim administrator when Mr. Biden first assumed office, has been appointed as the White House coordinator.
His deputy will be Dr. Demetre Daskalakis of the CDC. In the past, Daskalakis, the director of the organization’s HIV prevention division and a recognised authority on matters impacting the LGBTQ community, assisted in directing the COVID-19 response in New York City.
In order to tackle the current monkeypox outbreak, the two would coordinate “strategy and operations, including equally boosting the availability of testing, immunizations, and treatments,” according to the White House.
The nation’s foremost authority on infectious diseases and Vice President Biden’s top science advisor, Dr. Anthony Fauci, complimented their selections on Monday night and expressed optimism that they would improve cooperation between the different federal departments involved in the response to monkeypox.
Fauci declared, “I personally believe we’re up against a really significant problem here. “Many things are yet unknown. Monkeypox is well understood, yet there are still many unanswered questions.
Therefore, we must put our interventions into action, gain a greater understanding of the natural history and scope, and engage with the community in every way possible.
For these reasons, I believe Bob and Demetre make a great team.”
Sharing beds, towels, and clothing is another method of continuous and close skin-to-skin contact that can spread the monkeypox virus.
Males who have intercourse with other men have been the majority of those who have become ill thus far. However, health professionals stress that anyone can contract the infection.
The infection may result in a fever, chills, body pains, weariness, and lumps that resemble pimples on various body areas.
On May 18, the first incidence of the monkeypox virus in the United States was verified. As of this writing, there have been approximately 5,800 illnesses.
The appointment of the coordinator and deputy coordinator is reminiscent of the Biden administration’s response to COVID-19, in which the president moved virus response activities under Dr. Ashish Jha and Jeff Zients to the West Wing.
According to scientists, major vaccination programmes against monkeypox won’t be necessary, unlike those to combat COVID-19.
They believe that by using the available doses strategically in combination with other actions, it will be possible to stop the spreading diseases that have just just been classified as a global health emergency by the World Health Organization.
However, the Biden administration has come under fire for how quickly monkeypox vaccines are being available.
Major cities like New York and San Francisco have clinics that claim they haven’t gotten enough of the two-shot vaccine to fulfil demand.
Some of these clinics have had to cease providing the second dose of the vaccine in order to ensure that first doses are available.
According to the White House, more than 1.1 million vaccination doses have been made available, and 80,000 tests are now performed domestically every week.
Following New York’s declaration of a public health emergency over the weekend, California became the second state in three days to do the same on Monday, but the Biden administration didn’t seem to be going in that direction.
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra would make the choice, according to White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
In a statement, Becerra said, “We look forward to working with Bob Fenton and Demetre Daskalakis as we try to halt the monkeypox pandemic in America.
“As we seek to stay ahead of the virus and advance a whole-of-government response, Bob’s experience in federal and regional response coordination and Demetre’s broad knowledge of our public health systems’ strengths and weaknesses will be important.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom of California stated on Monday, “It is not surprising that Bob Fenton was chosen for this crucial position by President Biden given the severity of the monkeypox outbreak and the need for a proven and skilled leader in emergency response.
Throughout the COVID outbreak and tragic wildfires, Bob has been a crucial ally for California.”