Pause On Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Will Last At Least 1 More Week - US Health Agency

The pause on the administration of Johnson & Johnson vaccine will last at least one more week as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) will meet not earlier than next Friday to discuss the issue of the vaccine side-effects, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) chief Rochelle Walensky said during a press briefing

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th April, 2021) The pause on the administration of Johnson & Johnson vaccine will last at least one more week as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) will meet not earlier than next Friday to discuss the issue of the vaccine side-effects, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) chief Rochelle Walensky said during a press briefing.

"[On Wednesday] the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met to discuss the 6 cases [of blood clots after Johnson & Johnson vaccine] and provide recommendations," Walensky said on Friday. "The recommendation from this group of independent experts for a continued pause will allow additional time to review any additional cases that might come in and to them to conduct a complete risk assessment and to evaluate the emergent science.

ACIP will meet again this Friday, April 23 from 11 to 5 to provide further recommendations."

Walensky also said CDC has reached to about 10,000 health providers to educate them on what to look for in terms of possible side-effects after the administration of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Earlier in April, CDC and the food and Drug Administration issued a joint statement recommending a pause in the use of Johnson & Johnson vaccine after 6 confirmed cases of blood clots in combination with low levels of blood platelets found in women between the ages of 18 and 48. The symptoms occurred between 6-13 days after vaccination.