Boston Launches Summer Mpox Clinics After 77 Massachusetts Cases, First Site Opens June 1
Updated
Updated · The Boston Globe · May 30
Boston Launches Summer Mpox Clinics After 77 Massachusetts Cases, First Site Opens June 1
4 articles · Updated · The Boston Globe · May 30
Several Boston pop-up mpox vaccination clinics will run this summer, with the first opening June 1 at the city's Pride flag raising and offering low- or no-cost shots to insured and uninsured people.
Massachusetts logged 77 cases from Aug. 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026, up from 23 a year earlier, though officials said only two cases were reported from April 1 to May 28.
Boston health officials tied the rise to a large unvaccinated population, including people who were too young to get vaccinated during the 2022 outbreak and have since aged into adulthood.
The two-dose vaccine is about 80% effective, and officials said the current Boston cases are the less severe clade II strain, with no widespread public health threat at this time.
The local uptick remains far below 2022, when more than 400 people were sickened statewide and Boston cases peaked at 118, while U.S. monthly totals have generally stayed at 200 or fewer since 2024.
If mpox spreads without symptoms, is vaccination the only way to truly be safe?
With new mpox strains emerging globally, is the current vaccination plan enough for future outbreaks?
How can officials warn at-risk groups without fueling harmful public stigma and fear?