The extended use of the smallpox vaccine for people at high risk of monkeypox exposure has been announced by the Minister for Health.
In a statement this afternoon, Stephen Donnelly said the vaccine will be offered to gay and bisexual men, other men who have sex with men, as well as others at high risk of unprotected exposure.
The National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) has recommended that two doses of the smallpox vaccine should be administered 28 days apart to as many high-risk individuals as soon as practicable,
These recommendations were made last week by NIAC to the Interim Chief Medical Officer, who has endorsed them.
Mr Donnelly said these recommendations represent an "important step" in Ireland's response to the monkeypox outbreak, adding it will "help protect those at high risk of exposure to monkeypox".
"Monkeypox is usually a self-limiting illness, and most people recover within a few weeks, however the rapid spread of infection necessitates further measures beyond those currently in place," Mr Donnelly said.
"The evidence suggests this approach to targeted pre-exposure prophylaxis may be highly efficient in controlling further spread of the disease."
Interim CMO Professor Breda Smyth said that the recommendations reflect "a strengthening of measures to control disease transmission".
"I strongly encourage those with symptoms of infection to seek medical advice and follow the public health guidance," Prof Smyth added.
The Programme Manager at HIV Ireland's MPOWER scheme welcomed today’s announcement, but added that the organisation has done "a lot of the heavy lifting informing gay and bisexual men about monkeypox".
Adam Shanley leads the MPOWER programme - which develops resources and services to support and improve the sexual health of gay and bisexual men.
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"As gay and bisexual men, we have a long history and strong legacy of banding together in times of adversity, and our community discussion is an example of that - we are mobilising our peers in the face of this new challenge," Mr Shanley said.
"What we need now is to ensure that it is a coordinated vaccination programme that prioritises those in our community most at risk of acquiring the virus.
"We also need to make sure that we have enough supply to properly protect our whole community and bring this outbreak to an end. We'll work with our colleagues in the HSE and offer them our support in achieving this."
Additional reporting: Jason Kennedy
