Colleges keep vaccinating despite J&J vaccine pause
Many are persevering in the effort to get students their shots
When Ohio Gov. Mike Dewine announced his initiative on April 1 to vaccinate as many college students as possible against COVID-19 before the semester’s end, the plan was simple yet strategic.
The state would supply its colleges and universities with doses of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine, and schools would host on-campus vaccine clinics to inoculate students.
Many of Ohio’s 63 colleges and universities vaccinated their students at clinics last week. Others were scheduling appointments for mass vaccination clinics planned throughout April.
Then the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Tuesday that use of J&J’S Janssen COVID-19 vaccine should be halted temporarily to give officials time to investigate a potential link between the vaccine and severe blood clots. Six women out of more than 6.8 million vaccinated with J&J had clotting; one of those women died.
Dewine’s office called vaccine providers the same day to “temporarily pause” administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, following the federal guidance.
The pause put a wrinkle in many universities’ plans to start distributing the J&J vaccine to its students. Other COVID-19 vaccines such as Pfizerbiontech and Moderna require two doses several weeks apart, so using J&J’S one-and-done vaccine would help prevent any scheduling gymnastics required to schedule multiple appointments against the end of the semester.
Still, many Ohio colleges are persevering in the effort to get students vaccinated.
Ohio colleges pivot vaccination plans
Ben Batey, Bowling Green State University’s chief health officer, said receiving Tuesday’s news brought a mix of concern and considerations.
BGSU had been vaccinating students with Pfizer since mid-march, but with only a few weeks left in the semester, Batey said it would be more advantageous to switch to Johnson & Johnson so students wouldn’t have to schedule vaccinations during exams or stick around after classes end.
Two mass vaccination clinics using the J & J vaccine – one for students and another for the Bowling Green community – were planned to take place over the next two weeks at the university’s Perry Field House, Batey said.
But after Tuesday’s announcement, BGSU canceled those clinics and worked quickly to inform the community of the change. The university decided to expand its previously scheduled Pfizer clinics to include new first-dose patient appointments.
In Athens, Ohio University was already planning to offer the Pfizer vaccine at several of its clinics due to a J & J vaccine shortage, university spokeswoman
Carly Leatherwood said. Dewine visited OU on Monday to promote college vaccinations at the school’s only J & J vaccine clinic, where 349 students were vaccinated.
Now, OU will only offer the Pfizer vaccine at its four remaining vaccine clinics this semester. Those already registered will automatically be offered the Pfizer vaccine at their appointment and will be given a follow-up date and time for their second dose during that visit.
Other schools didn’t have much reorganizing to do.
Wright State University near Dayton already had a program offering Moderna vaccines to students that pre-dated the state’s J&J program, said university spokesman Seth Bauguess.
“When we paused, we mostly reinforced that there was also an existing option and the scheduling for students would take place through the same contacts at Wright State Physicians,” Baugess said.
Ohio State didn’t have any J & J appointments scheduled on Tuesday, said university spokesman Ben Johnson. Students who sign up to get vaccinated at the Schottenstein Center will now receive Pfizer doses. The university is also still providing shuttle rides for students to and from their appointments.
Regardless of what vaccine schools are now offering, the question many students are grappling with is whether or not to get vaccinated before the semester ends.
Part of Dewine’s push to get as many students vaccinated on campus before they scatter across the state and country for summer break is to help prevent the virus’ spread. Studies show that fewer young people get very sick with COVID-19, but Dewine said he wanted to prioritize getting college students vaccinated because they are “significant carriers” of the virus and interact more frequently with others.
Although it might be a little inconvenient to schedule a vaccine appointment in between studying for exams, it’s better than being sick, said Dr. Iahn Gonsenhauser, chief quality and patient safety officer at Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center.
“Jumping through a few hoops to get a safe and effective vaccine is one step students can take to get back to the college experience they’re expecting,” Gonsenhauser said.
For students whose campus home isn’t near their hometown, some have questioned whether it makes sense to get vaccinated now if they won’t be around for their second appointment.
Johnson said Ohio State is still
strongly encouraging students, faculty and staff to take advantage of its vaccination program regardless of where home may be.
“Students who will be leaving Columbus for summer break should check with local vaccine providers and see if they’ll administer the second dose to someone who received their first dose elsewhere,” Johnson said. “Students within driving distance of Columbus can return to the Schott for their second dose.”
Ohio University is requiring students to verify that they can be in Athens 21 days after the first dose to receive the second dose, the university said in a statement.
Batey said what matters most is that students at least start their vaccination schedule at school even if they won’t be around after final exams.
“Even one dose has an extremely high effectiveness,” Batey said. “The most important thing is to get those antibodies going.”
Batey noted that countries like Canada and England, who don’t have the same vaccine supply as the U.S., are scheduling Pfizer and Moderna appointments up to three months apart so people are at least partly vaccinated.
BGSU is also helping students schedule appointments who may not live in the area with their local health departments, Batey said.
Approximately 80% of Wright State’s students live in and around the Dayton region, Bauguess said. Whether students drive back to campus for a second dose or find one in the community, Bauguess said there are plenty of options for students to get vaccinated.
“Is it as handy-dandy as J&J? No, but many students should be able to make it back to get a second dose,” Bauguess said. “To be able to immediately provide something is a win until we figure out what’s happening with Johnson & Johnson.”
Gonsenhauser urged students not to be reluctant to get vaccinated because of the J&J pause.
“Pfizer and Moderna are designed with significantly different technology, so there’s no reason to presume there would be any similar side effects to what we’re seeing with Johnson & Johnson,” he said.
Now that many older adults are fully vaccinated against the virus, Gonsenhauser said it’s young people’s turn to stop the spread of COVID-19.
“We’re at a point that if we’re not careful, we could see more cases rise again,” he said, “and no one wants that.” shendrix@dispatch.com @sheridan120