In the wake of the U.S. declaring monkeypox a public health emergency earlier this month, a Boston-based digital health care provider has rolled out new treatment services.
Folx Health, a LGBTQ-focused health care provider, has launched education, counseling, evaluation and referrals for monkeypox treatment.
Monkeypox was historically found in parts of Central and West Africa, according to The New York Times, but its recent spread across the globe has concerned public health officials. As of Aug. 23, there were nearly 16,000 reported cases in the U.S.
The virus does not only impact the LGBTQ community. But the CDC reported that the vast majority of cases thus far have been among gay and bisexual men. Public health experts believe the disease may have first spread outside Africa at a gay rave in Europe. They think that because the disease spreads through close physical contact, it has gone on to disproportionately impact this community.
“The LGBTQIA+ community has long struggled to access affirming and expert care and has a history of being unfairly blamed for the spread of viruses, as was the case during the beginning of the HIV/AIDS crisis. As monkeypox began to spread, we felt it was our duty and responsibility as a queer and trans health care provider to quickly mobilize and serve as a source of truth in a sea of misinformation,” Liana Douillet Guzmán, CEO of Folx Health, said in a statement.
The symptoms of monkeypox may include a fever, rash and headache.
Folx Health’s virtual health care offering — which costs $59 for a one-time, 30-minute appointment — will now include monkeypox care. Members can access education, counseling, information on symptoms and safety, as well as help finding a vaccination or treatment site. Folx said all of its clinicians have been trained in the latest monkeypox treatment information.
“This past year, we’ve seen so many marginalized communities be stripped of their rights when it comes to health care. As a clinician who has spent her career at the frontlines of queer health and reproductive health, I firmly believe in the importance and power of agency and autonomy when it comes to how people seek and receive healthcare,” said Kate Steinle, chief clinical officer at Folx Health.
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Folx Health launched in December 2020 with $4.4 million in seed funding led by Polaris. It went on to raise $25 million just two months later. In February 2022, the company named Douillet Guzmán, a former operations and marketing executive, as its new CEO.
Massachusetts’ Department of Public Health has been trying to stretch its limited supply of the monkeypox vaccine. The FDA-licensed vaccine Jynneos is managed tightly by the CDC; only about 14 locations across Massachusetts have access to the vaccine.
Cambridge-based vaccine giant Moderna Inc. said it it's not ready to jump into production of monkeypox vaccines. Executives said earlier this month that they were closely monitoring the spread of monkeypox. They have a vaccine in preclinical development but have yet to decide whether to move forward with it.
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