Austin (KXAN) — Austin Public Health (APH) has a new initiative to get more people vaccinated against monkeypox.

“At least 27 women in the state have tested positive, were not sexually involved in another positive case, and are spreading among more people who were spread through face-to-face transmission through direct skin-to-skin contact or infection. Austin-Travis County Health Official Dr. Desmar Walks said in a release Thursday: “The virus is finding a way out, but the vaccine is the way out.”

APH said it has obtained more than 5,000 vials of the JYNNEOS vaccine to date. She has donated 2,544 vials to her partners in communities such as CommUnityCare, Kind Clinic and Vivent Health.

APH has a survey (in Spanish) to determine if you are eligible for the vaccine based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria.

APH’s epidemiology, equity lines, and nursing staff have responded to thousands of monkeypox-related calls in the past two months and continue to provide information and schedule vaccine appointments for those without internet access. I said I will.

APH said it has contacted all confirmed contacts of the positive case to schedule a vaccine.

In addition, more than 1,600 people on the waiting list have been contacted to make an appointment this week.

This expanded eligibility criteria comes shortly after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced emergency use authorization for the Jynneos vaccine, allowing healthcare providers to administer the vaccine by shallow injection under the skin rather than injection into muscle tissue. Now

Each vial now offers 3 to 5 doses.

APH says you can protect yourself by:

• Dress fully and avoid skin-to-skin contact with strangers.
• Limit close and/or intimate contact with people you know. Close contact includes sharing items such as drinks and blankets.
• If social distancing is not possible, wear a close-fitting mask in close proximity to reduce direct exchange of mouth/nasal fluids.
• Wash or sanitize your hands and clean surfaces.
• If you feel unwell or have symptoms, please stay home.