Meet the Pharmacist Responsible for Giving Half of His County ’s Monkeypox Vaccine

Clint Hopkins and his husband, Joel Hockman, own Pucci’s Pharmacy in Sacramento, but you might not always find them there. Since the monkeypox outbreak began in the U.S., the pair and their team of health professionals are just as likely to be at a bar, private party, or their local LGBTQ center administering monkeypox vaccines. “We’re in a bit of a unique situation, because we’re LGBT and part of the community that is at highest risk,” says Hockman, COO of Pucci’s. “We’re aware of social events that are going on through our social network, so we reached out and said, ‘Hey, we know you’re going to get together—let us come and vaccinate everybody while they’re there.” [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The vaccine to prevent monkeypox, called Jynneos, can protect people from getting infected before they are exposed to the virus. The latest outbreak has spread quickly among people in LGBTQ communities in the U.S. and several countries, after people were potentially exposed at large gatherings. But vaccines don’t always reach this high-risk group because of stigma. Some people are concerned about being identified as LGBTQ, while others prefer not to reveal their sexual orientation to employers, friends, or family, which could happen if they were seen at a testing site or in a line at a public health clinic to receive a monkeypox vaccine. Hopkins and his team are trying to eliminate thes...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized healthscienceclimate monkeypox Source Type: news