Get Your Free 2024 Mpox Vaccine, Say San Francisco Health Officials

Back in the summer and fall of 2022, an outbreak of the mpox virus— formerly known as monkeypox — hit the United States, particularly affecting gay and bisexual men, as well as trans and nonbinary people who have sex with men.

After a mass vaccination effort led by organizers from the LGBTQ+ community and public health officials, the rate of mpox infections dropped sharply to very low numbers in California. But with San Francisco’s giant 2024 Pride celebrations a month away, the city’s health officials are once again reminding local communities to seek out the free mpox vaccine if they haven’t already — even though there hasn’t been another outbreak here so far.

Keep reading to learn what we know about mpox in the Bay Area in 2024, the precautions local public health officials recommend ahead of Pride month, and where you can find an mpox vaccine.

Jump straight to:

• Where can I find a free mpox vaccine?
• What is mpox and how does it spread?
• What are the symptoms of mpox? What does the rash look like?

Do I need to worry about mpox again in the Bay Area in 2024?

The good news: There is no current mpox outbreak in the Bay Area or California, confirmed Dr. Julia Janssen, deputy director of the HIV/STI Prevention and Control Branch at the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) — and case counts remain low. In 2024, San Francisco has only seen nine total mpox cases so far.

Janssen said that SFPDH is, therefore, basing its vaccine reminder on:

The possible seasonality of mpox

Based on previous surges of infections during the summer and fall months, city health officials recognize “that this may be a seasonal pattern,” Janssen said — and they’re making their recommendations accordingly. (After the “large surge of cases” during the initial 2022 outbreak, San Francisco saw a second, smaller surge of 87 cases the following year from July through December 2023.)

And while “we don’t know enough about mpox yet to know if we’ll see that again,” Janssen said, “because we’ve seen it in the past, we want to be ready, and we want to be prepared.”

Summer travel and mpox cases elsewhere

There’s also San Francisco’s Pride celebrations right around the corner in June — when many folks gather and arrive in the region from other parts of the United States.

“In the summer months, with more travel, more events, more interactions, and more gatherings, there’s more opportunities for mpox to spread,” Janssen said. And while nationally, mpox cases have “remained quite low over the past several months,” Janssen said, “we are watching other areas of the country.”

Globally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are also monitoring a recent outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo of a strain of mpox — called “clade I” — that causes more severe illness and higher fatality rates than the “clade II” type that’s been circulating in the U.S. According to the CDC’s most recent available figures, this clade I outbreak has resulted in more than 19,000 suspected cases and over 900 deaths.

“Thus far, there have been no known clade I cases of mpox in the United States,” Janssen said. “We would provide any updates if that were to change.”

Making the mpox vaccine routine

SFPDH and other health agencies want people to consider the mpox vaccine “as a part of comprehensive sexual health care,” Janssen said— rather than an emergency response.

“We want to encourage people to think about it as they’re thinking about STI testing, treatment and evaluation … as a part of their comprehensive sexual health,” she said.

Who is most at risk from mpox?

SFDPH said that previous mpox outbreaks have predominantly affected communities of gay and bisexual men, and men who have sex with men (MSM), as well as trans and nonbinary people who have sex with men.

City health officials also especially recommend the mpox vaccine for all people living with HIV, and “anyone taking or eligible to take HIV PrEP.”

“In San Francisco, over 99% of our cases since July 1, 2023, have been among cis men with male partners,” Janssen said.

A reminder: The mpox vaccine is available to anybody in the Bay Area, with no eligibility requirements to meet. (In the early days of the 2022 outbreak, public health officials were originally only offering vaccines to people who’d been exposed to mpox or were categorized as being in a specific group more at risk from mpox, but rest assured that those criteria are no longer in effect.)

The mpox vaccine was also originally only available for people aged 18 and older, but in 2022 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an emergency-use authorization that allows providers to also give the vaccine to young people aged under 18 who are “determined to be at high risk” of infection.

Do I need to get the mpox vaccine?

The mpox vaccine currently available in the U.S. (brand name: Jynneos) is a two-dose series, with roughly a month between doses.

“Maximal immunity is achieved two weeks after receipt of the second dose of the vaccine,” Janssen said.

So …

If you’ve already had both doses of the mpox vaccine:

You’re all up to date — and you don’t need to get another mpox vaccine in 2024. There’s no recommendation at this time to get an mpox booster, confirmed Janssen.

If you haven’t already had the mpox vaccine

Go ahead and get your first dose as soon as possible, then get your second dose around 28 days later. A good reason to move quickly to get your first dose right now: You’ll then be able to get your second dose just ahead of Pride, and your immunity will quickly start building to that maximal level.

But if you forget or get overwhelmed by events, don’t stress too much about timing: Just go get your mpox vaccine when you can. “Any vaccine is better than no vaccine,” Janssen said, “so we’re encouraging people to get vaccinated as soon as possible to get protection.”

If you got only your first dose of the mpox vaccine or more than 28 days ago:

Go get your second dose as soon as possible, Janssen said — and don’t worry if you got your first dose as long ago as 2022, back in the original outbreak.

“You can get the second dose at any time,” Janssen confirmed.

Where can I find the mpox vaccine?

Your mpox vaccine will be 100% free, and you don’t need health insurance to receive one. As with the COVID-19 vaccine, receiving an mpox vaccine won’t make you a public charge or affect any future immigration processes you may enter into, and you won’t be asked about your immigration status to receive the mpox vaccine.

If you have a regular health care provider, SFDPH recommends you ask them first about getting the mpox vaccine. Your vaccine will be free, but you may be charged a regular copay for seeing your provider.

If you don’t have a regular health care provider or insurance, you can find the mpox vaccine free at clinics around the Bay Area. You can opt to schedule an appointment or choose a walk-in clinic, depending on what works best for you.

If you live in or near San Francisco:

See a full list of mpox vaccine sites near you in San Francisco. Cohen confirms that you don’t have to be a city resident to get vaccinated for mpox in San Francisco.

Mpox vaccination sites elsewhere in the Bay Area and California:

• Find an mpox vaccine clinic near you using the CDC’s Vaccine Locator
• Find an mpox vaccine clinic near you using the state’s myturn.ca.gov site

Can I get my mpox vaccine at a pharmacy?

Some pharmacies offer mpox vaccination appointments online, along with other vaccines like COVID and flu. But if you choose this route, you’ll be asked for insurance details — and it’s important to verify with your insurer first that they’ll cover you receiving the mpox vaccine at a pharmacy like CVS or Walgreens, as the out-of-pocket costs you’ll be quoted may be steep.

If you get your health care through a health system like Kaiser Permanente, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to get your mpox vaccine covered by insurance at a pharmacy — the way you can’t get your COVID or flu shot covered by Kaiser at a pharmacy either — and may have to seek it directly from a Kaiser provider.

If you’re able to make an appointment online at a pharmacy for your mpox vaccine, you should consider calling that location ahead of time to verify that they do indeed have supply in stock. A CVS spokesperson told KQED by email that in San Francisco, CVS pharmacies have “limited supply of the monkeypox vaccine in our pharmacies, but a pharmacist can order the vaccine if requested by a patient.”

How effective is the mpox vaccine?

Very. “While we know that no vaccine is 100% effective, we do know that less than 1% of persons who have been fully vaccinated have been diagnosed with mpox,” Janssen said, citing a recent study from the CDC on the mpox vaccine’s efficacy.

Another reason to get an mpox vaccine: It’s been shown to help reduce symptoms — which can be very painful — if you do still get infected. It also “reduces illness severity and the risk of hospitalization and death,” Janssen said.

What is mpox, and how does it spread?

Mpox is a disease that is caused when a person is infected with the mpox virus. As the name might suggest, the virus is related to the smallpox virus but is generally less severe and “much less contagious” than smallpox, according to CDPH.

Mpox spreads through “prolonged skin-to-skin contact,” SFDPH said, which can include sex, kissing and sharing bedding or clothing.

See how mpox cases are tracked around the country:

• Mpox case data for California via the California Department of Public Health (CDPH)
• Mpox case data for San Francisco via SFDPH
• Mpox case data for the United States via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

What are the symptoms of mpox?

Mpox symptoms often start as flu-like conditions, SFPDH said, but the virus also appears as a rash or sores or spots that can resemble pimples or blisters on the skin anywhere on the body, especially around your genitals. These spots often start as “red, flat spots and then become bumps,” SFDPH said, before the bumps become filled with pus and turn into scabs when they break.

If you’re unsure about recognizing an mpox rash, the CDC has a photo guide.

Mpox can have a long incubation period — that is, the time between when you’re exposed to mpox and when you start to develop symptoms — that can range from three to 17 days, according to the CDC.

If you suspect you might have mpox symptoms — even if they’re subtle — see your health care provider right away or consult one of SFPDH’s clinics for mpox testing. See more on what to do if you suspect you have mpox.

Is mpox the same as monkeypox?

Yes. In 2022, the World Health Organization announced it would adopt the new, preferred term “mpox” as a synonym for monkeypox in light of the “racist and stigmatizing language online, in other settings and in some communities” that the agency said it had observed during the outbreak earlier that year.

You may have also seen the virus referred to as MPX, which was the name originally adopted by SFDPH.