Officials' handling of monkeypox susceptibility echoes misinformation from HIV/AIDS epidemic

By Steve Goldstein
Published: Thursday, August 18, 2022 - 12:41pm

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casey simon
Casey Simon
Casey Simon

When monkeypox first emerged as a health concern in recent months, much of the focus was on the LGBTQ community and men who have sex with other men. But as it becomes clearer that susceptibility to monkeypox isn't based on sexual behavior, the narrative is changing and a vaccine is more readily available.

At the same time, that reality doesn't modify how discussion of monkeypox began, and that remains a concern.

The Show spoke with Casey Simon of the Southwest Center for HIV/AIDS and began the conversation by asking him about how initial information about monkeypox affected how people felt about it.

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