Spain ramps up mpox vaccine in the Valencian Community

Spain’s Ministry of Health has announced plans to expand vaccination centres to better prevent mpox (monkeypox) infections.

The aim is to improve vaccine access for high-risk groups.

Valencian Community

This decision was made during a meeting led by Health Minister Marciano Gómez, where officials reviewed the current situation in the Valencian Community.

According to the latest update from the Ministry of Health’s “Epidemiological Situation of Mpox Cases in Spain” report, twelve new cases have been confirmed in the region this year, though none have been reported in Alicante.

WHO Health Emergency

These figures come shortly after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared a health emergency last week in response to a sharp rise in cases of a new, more virulent and contagious strain of mpox identified in Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Since the 2022 outbreak, when a health alert was first issued, the Valencian Community has recorded 585 cases of mpox, with the majority – 547 cases (95.5 per cent) – occurring during 2022.