Marin Health Says J&J Vaccines To Be Safely Stored Amid 'Pause'

MARIN COUNTY, CA — Marin County officials said in a statement Tuesday that it will comply with a U.S. request to pause administering the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

The request came Tuesday morning from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration following a report of six cases of a rare type of blood clot in individuals who received the J&J vaccine.

“We will safely store all available J&J supply until FDA and CDC conclude their investigation of the product,” Marin County Pubic Health said in a statement.

The pause isn’t expected to impact the county’s rollout.

County officials said the J&J vaccine accounts for less than 3 percent of its cumulative vaccine allocation.

“The temporary halt will mainly impact our mobile operations, where J&J’s one dose increased vaccination capacity,” MCPH’s statement said.

Mobile teams will administer the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines in their continued efforts to vaccinate harder to reach groups.

This is the second such “pause” that has been issued county officials said, noting the Jan. 17 request from the California Department of Public Health amid an advisory to pause administration of a specific lot of the Moderna vaccine after some adverse reactions were observed at a vaccine site in Southern California.

Marin County vaccine providers held unused Moderna doses until they were given the ‘all clear’ to safely resume use from CDPH about one week later.

“We are encouraged to see that the vaccine monitoring and surveillance systems are functioning as intended to ensure the safety of all vaccine recipients across the U.S.” MCPH’s statement said.

“While CDC and FDA investigate these cases carefully, we encourage everyone who is eligible to continue pursuing either a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.

“The COVID-19 vaccine remains a safe and powerful tool in our COVID-19 pandemic-ending toolkit, along with wearing a mask, watching your distance and washing your hands frequently.”