Hochul declares ‘state disaster emergency’ for monkeypox in New York

Gov. Kathy Hochul has issued an executive order Friday declaring a “state disaster emergency” in response to the recent monkeypox outbreak.

The executive order enables the state to respond more promptly to the outbreak and allows health care professionals to take additional steps to ensure New Yorkers are vaccinated, according to a news release.

The order also extends the pool of eligible individuals who can administer monkeypox vaccines — such as EMS personnel, pharmacists and midwives — physicians and certified nurse practitioners are allowed to issue non-patient specific orders for monkeypox vaccines and it requires providers to send vaccine data to the New York State Department of Health, according to the statement.

As of Tuesday, there were 1,092 presumed cases of monkeypox within the city, according to the city Health Department.

“More than one in four monkeypox cases in this country are in New York State, and we need to utilize every tool in our arsenal as we respond. It’s especially important to recognize the ways in which this outbreak is currently having a disproportionate impact on certain at-risk groups,” Hochul wrote in a statement.

This response comes days after the announcement that the federal government is sending New York City an additional 80,000 monkeypox vaccines.

On Thursday, New York state Health Commissioner Mary Bassett declared monkeypox an “imminent threat” to public health in the state.