Catholic group gives OK to J&J vaccine

Anti-abortion groups want choice of shots

The Connecticut Catholic Conference has approved the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, in response to concerns from anti-abortion groups in the state and elsewhere.

The Connecticut Catholic Conference has given the OK for residents to receive the new Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, in response to concerns from anti-abortion groups in the state and elsewhere.

In a statement signed by Archbishop of Hartford Leonard P. Blair and several other prominent local clergy, the conference declared that all residents “should feel free in good conscience to receive any of the vaccines current available ... for the sake of their own health and the common good.”

The statement comes as the Johnson & Johnson vaccine continues to rile some anti-abortion activists, who object to the use of stem cells derived from abortions in its production. On Friday, Connecticut Right to Life asked acting public health commissioner Dr. Deidre Gifford to “offer more transparency on which vaccine will be offered at vaccine distribution sites” so that people who object to the Johnson & Johnson version can avoid receiving it.

“Many anti-abortion advocates want to receive a vaccine, however object to the production methods of the Johnson and Johnson product,” wrote Christopher O’Brien, executive director of Connecticut Right to Life. “Using stem cells, even decades later, that were derived from the

abortion of a human being is morally objectionable. That baby has innate rights us as any other human being.”

Currently, some vaccine providers in Connecticut offer patients the choice of which vaccine to receive, while others, including the state’s VAMS system, do not.

The Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, which oversees Catholic doctrine, has declared that “it is morally acceptable to receive COVID-19 vaccines that have used cell lines from aborted fetuses in their research and production process” when “ethically irreproachable” vaccines are not available.

Still, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, this week announced that it opposed the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which was authorized for emergency use last week and has already been distributed and administered in Connecticut and elsewhere.

“Pfizer and Moderna’s vaccines raised concerns because an abortion-derived cell line was used for testing them, but not in their production,” read the message, which was posted to the Bridgeport Diocese website. “The Johnson & Johnson vaccine, however, was developed, tested and is produced with abortion-derived cell lines raising additional moral concerns.”

Noting the guidance from the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, the conference said it was acceptable to receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine but that residents should choose the Pfizer-BioN-Tech or Moderna versions if possible.

Trinity Health of New England, the Catholic health system that runs Saint Francis Hospital and other facilities, has administered the Johnson & Johnson vaccine along with the other two versions. In an email Friday, a Trinity Health spokesperson said the system “believes administering lifesaving vaccines should not be delayed and we continue supporting vaccinating our communities as supplies are available.”

All three available COVID-19 vaccines have been found to be safe and effective in combating COVID-19, essentially eliminating hospitalization and death due to the disease. Experts and health officials have urged residents accept whichever vaccine they are offered, to help Connecticut more quickly achieve the herd immunity necessary to end the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The message we need to pass to the community is that all the vaccines are safe, all the vaccines reduce hospitalization, reduce death,” Dr. Ajay Kumar, chief clinical officer at Hartford HealthCare, said last week. “And they provide much-needed relief.”