U.S. PAUSES J&J COVID-19 JABS
Health authorities to investigate vaccine’s link to blood clots; company delays European rollout
HEALTH authorities have recommended pausing the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) Covid19 shot over blood clot fears, with the company announcing it would delay its European rollout in a setback for global immunisation efforts.
Out of nearly seven million Americans who have received the single-dose vaccine, six women between the ages of 18 and 48 developed a rare type of clot in the brain, officials said.
One later died, while another is in critical condition.
United States Food and Drug
Administration scientist Peter Marks has said the disorder might be triggered by a rare immune response to the vaccine similar to that seen in a few hundred recipients of the AstraZeneca jab in Europe.
“We have made the decision to proactively delay the rollout of our vaccine in Europe,” J&J said.
US authorities are conducting a probe which could result in tough regulatory choices, such as restricting the J&J vaccine to older people.
People who have received the shot within the past three weeks were asked to report to their doctors if they experienced severe headaches, abdominal pain, leg pain or shortness of breath.
The White House said it was confident there would be no “significant impact” on vaccination plans in the world’s hardest-hit country, where almost half of all adults have now received at least one dose.
Meanwhile in Germany, people under the age of 60 who have received a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine will receive a different jab for their second dose, federal and regional health ministers said.
Germany has suspended distribution of the two-dose vaccine to people under 60 due to concerns over a possible link to rare blood clot cases.
But while J&J paused output, Pfizer said it increased production and could deliver 10 per cent more doses than expected to the US by the end of May.
That would bring its delivery by the end of next month to 220 million doses, its chief executive officer Albert Bourla said, adding that it can also “supply the full 300 million agreed on ... two weeks early”.