Give onedose vaccine a shot, officials advise
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine will keep people alive and out of the hospital, and protect them from severe COVID-19 symptoms. It only requires one shot. It hit impressive efficacy rates in a study flush with coronavirus variants that earlier vaccines have yet to be fully vetted against.
And yet, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, two weeks after its emergency approval and as it starts to roll out across the United States, has been labeled by some as second rate to its two older siblings, Moderna and Pfizer. One city initially turned away doses, and even in the Bay Area health officials say they hear eligible people balk at the third choice.
State and local health officials spent Thursday
on a Johnson & Johnson vaccine public relations tour, attempting to dispel those concerns or fears. They shared the hashtag #oneanddone. And at the Oakland Coliseum, Dr. Nadine Burke Harris — the surgeon general of California, who is Black — got a shot of Johnson & Johnson in her left arm.
“I will tell you, after working with my colleagues at the state behind the scenes combating this pandemic for the past yearplus, the thing that came into my mind when the vaccine went into my arm was hugging my mom again,” she said. “I think that’s something that too many Californians have been without since this pandemic has begun.”
In fact, her mother, who has been ill and stuck in a hospital bed, also got the Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week.
“We have looked at the science and the research, and this vaccine is so good, it’s good enough for my mother,” Harris said. “As we think about that light that’s at the end of the tunnel, it’s going to require all of us to get vaccinated.”
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines — both of which require two shots — are both about 95% effective at preventing symptomatic COVID19, including mild to severe illness. Johnson & Johnson, which needs just the one shot, prevents about 85% of severe illness. People achieve full immunity faster overall with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine — about four weeks after the injection, compared with 10 days to two weeks after the second injection for the other two.
All three vaccines are about 100% effective at preventing hospitalization and death, which Dr. Philip Grant, an infectious disease physician at Stanford Health Care who led its Johnson & Johnson vaccine trial, said is most important.
“There will always be people fixated on the relatively small differences in protection of mild disease,” Grant said. The Johnson & Johnson efficacy on mild cases likely took a hit because the study took place after the virus had already mutated and created trickier variants. But what’s key is the protection from hospitalization and death, he said.
“For me, it’s a nobrainer,” Grant said. “Get the vaccination to get back to a normal life.”
Counties across California received their first large shipments of Johnson & Johnson doses this week and were already putting them to use at large vaccination sites, as well as mobile units and other clinics meant to serve hardtoreach populations. The vaccine, in addition to only needing the one dose, also is easier to move around than the others, which require cold storage.
In Marin County, the public health department received 1,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson early this week and it has administered 100 shots so far, said Dr. Matt Willis, the health officer. The remaining doses will be brought to mobile clinics scheduled to visit skilled nursing facilities looking for new residents or those who slipped through the cracks during earlier vaccination events.
“For the mobile effort, it’s really helpful as a oneanddone,” Willis said. “One dose is also good for people who don’t want to go through that experience twice, maybe they’re afraid of needles or it’s difficult to get to appointments.”
He had no concerns over the Johnson & Johnson option.
“The best vaccine for you is the one available at that time,” Willis said. The faster shots go into arms, the sooner herd immunity can be reached, he said.
The San Francisco Department of Public Health received 4,800 doses of the Johnson & Johnson and almost 350 people have been given shots so far. About 1,500 San Francisco teachers started getting those shots Thursday in a threeday effort at the district offices.
Contra Costa County public health received 4,000 doses this week and have put 1,000 into arms, said Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano. Many have been sent to hospitals to vaccinate older patients upon discharge or used in mobile units.
He said the county gets people requesting certain vaccines, but there’s not enough supply to offer options. The county has allowed people to reschedule in the hopes of getting a different vaccine, but with no guarantees, he said.
“Compared to other things we offer vaccines for, these are all some of the most effective for treating infectious diseases,” he said.
Napa County received 300 doses Tuesday, which officials sent to private partners to disperse, said spokesperson Janet Upton.
“What I’m hearing is, anecdotally, the oneanddone factor is a plus,” she said.
In San Mateo County, public health officials received 3,200 doses. They plan to disburse them in a Saturday clinic and are exploring other options. The simpler storage and handling requirements provide more flexibility, said Anand Chabra, the COVID19 vaccination branch chief.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine took some early public relations hits, such as the mayor of Detroit turning down 6,200 doses, saying he favored shots from Pfizer and Moderna. He quickly walked back the comments and accepted shipments, but it helped fuel concerns that Johnson & Johnson vaccine recipients may be less protected than others.
No Bay Area counties have expressed any concerns.
“Not at all,” Farnitano said. “All the vaccines are great and we want as much of every flavor as we can get our hands on.”
Another hiccup for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine has been criticism from religious groups, including the Archdiocese of San Francisco.
“The newer Johnson & Johnson vaccine ... is more morally compromised in that stem cells from a line deriving from an aborted fetus were used in its manufacture, not only in testing,” Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone said in an early March statement. He said it was still OK to get that vaccine, but advised taking Moderna and Pfizer over Johnson & Johnson if given the option.