PASS Partners with LA LGBT Center to Provide Monkeypox Vaccine

On Friday, August 5th, PASS partnered with the LA LGBT Center to provide a vaccine clinic to sex workers in Los Angeles County - vaccinating nearly 70 people over the course of the day. PASS Board Member Jamey Bell, who is also Medical Director for The Center’s Sexual Health Education Program, both brokered the partnership and administered the vaccines the day of. 

The first confirmed case of the current monkeypox pandemic was on May 6, 2022. As of August 10, 2022, just three months later, there have been over 33,000 confirmed cases worldwide - and over 10,000 in the United States alone. The virus is characterized by painful lesions throughout the body lasting several weeks, and is primarily spread by skin-to-skin contact. 

There is no question that sex workers need access to the monkeypox vaccine, but slow government response has forced aggressive rationing of the limited available supply. We have received reports from sex workers across the country desperate to access the vaccine, but have been denied by local health authorities for not meeting the eligibility criteria.

We are grateful for this partnership and are looking to have more vaccine clinics for our community as supply becomes available - but our community is more than Los Angeles. We have compiled a list of vaccine resources known to us, but due to limited supply To that end, we have launched an advocacy campaign asking government officials to #GiveUsAShot.