A male inmate has become the first confirmed case of monkeypox at the Harris County Jail, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez announced via Twitter Thursday morning. The inmate was first booked into jail on Aug. 15 "without complaints" and tested positive for the virus on Aug. 22, the sheriff tweeted.
The inmate was placed in temporary quarantine as part of the jail's COVID-19 protocols, Gonzalez wrote. After being in quarantine for nearly a week, the inmate began to show possible symptoms of monkeypox on Monday. "We have activated our protocols for contract tracing and have been in communication with our public health partners," Gonzalez tweeted. "Cleaning and disinfecting protocols are also being followed. We are managing the care of the male and the well-being of our personnel. "
We have the first confirmed positive case of monkeypox virus in the Harris County jail. The male inmate was booked on 8-15-22 without complaints. In accordance with our COVID protocols, the male was placed in temporary quarantine. He was in quarantine when we learned of 1/2 pic.twitter.com/zLNcty55Jq
— Ed Gonzalez (@SheriffEd_HCSO) August 25, 2022
Further details about the inmate and his condition have not been released. As of Wednesday, there were 476 monkeypox cases in the county, according to Harris County Public Health. At least 2,284 first doses of the monkeypox vaccine have been administered in the region.
During a press conference Tuesday, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo announced eligibility for the monkeypox vaccine through the Harris County Public Health Department had been expanded to include men who have sex with men. County officials had previously opened eligibility to those with high- or intermediate-risk who have come in contact with someone with monkeypox, people who have attended an event or venue where there was a high risk of exposure, those who were diagnosed with HIV, chlamydia, gonorrhea or early syphilis in the past 12 months, and those who are on HIV pre-exposure pophylaxis (PrEP).
Hidalgo to Provide Monkeypox Update and Announce Expanded Vaccine Eligibility Criteria https://t.co/3lfAkqAxXY
— Office of Judge Lina Hidalgo (@HarrisCoJudge) August 23, 2022
Hidalgo added that a Harris County child who recently tested presumptively positive for monkeypox—which would have been the first pediatric case in Texas—did not have the virus and the test result was ruled a false positive by the CDC. False positive cases are very rare and only occur around four percent of the time, she said.
"Obviously, it's good news to know that as far as we can tell, monkeypox remains mostly concentrated in the groups we've focused our response efforts on and has not spread to kids yet," Hidalgo said, encouraging those who are eligible to get vaccinated against the virus. "We're working everyday to learn as much as we can about this virus, to work to outsmart it and try to stay ahead of it."