An advisory panel to the CDC unanimously voted to give a preferential recommendation to mRNA vaccines, like those made by Pfizer and Moderna, over the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine due to rare but serious blood clots.
The CDC temporarily halted Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine in April while scientists investigated the blood clots, which are known as “thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome.”
Syringes filled with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are shown, Thursday, May 13, 2021, at a mobile vaccination site at the Greater Bethel Church in Miami. ((AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee))
Regulators eventually decided that the benefits of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine outweighed the risks, but the FDA released new data this week showing that more cases have occurred in the summer and fall.
Women between the ages of 30 and 49 are most affected by the blood clotting issue at a rate of about 1 in 100,000 shots.
Health officials have confirmed 54 cases of the blood clots, nine of which have been fatal, CDC official Dr. Isaac See said Thursday. Two more deaths are suspected to be related to the blood clotting issue.
The recommendation now goes to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky for approval. A CDC official told FOX Business they plan to release updated clinical considerations on Friday, but that individuals who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should still receive a booster dose two months after their initial vaccine.
If an individual received a Johnson & Johnson shot for their primary dose and then a booster of any vaccine, then they do not need to be re-vaccinated with an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, according to the official.
