MI Moves Forward With Administration Of Johnson & Johnson Vaccine

LANSING, MI — Michigan is recommending COVID-19 vaccine providers across the state resume the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on people 18 and older, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services announced late Friday.

Use of the vaccine was temporarily paused on April 13 following a recommendation from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention because of blood-clot concerns.

However, federal health officials on Friday adopted a committee's recommendation that the pause on the Johnson & Johnson single-dose coronavirus vaccine be lifted, effectively putting the vaccine in use again.

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“We are glad to be able to begin administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine again in Michigan following the thorough review and recommendations of ACIP, CDC and FDA,” said Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, Michigan's chief medical executive and chief deputy for health. “This brief pause indicates there is a robust safety review process in place for these vaccines. These adverse events appear to be extremely rare as nearly 7 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine have been administered in the U.S. with only 15 cases of this blood clotting syndrome confirmed. We encourage everyone to continue making appointments to be vaccinated with the safe and effective Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. These vaccines are the way we are going to end this pandemic as quickly as possible and move toward a sense of normalcy.”

Read More: Michigan Pauses Use Of Johnson & Johnson Vaccine

The J&J pause was recommended on April 13 following reports of six cases of a rare and severe type of blood clot in individuals following administration of the vaccine.

In a joint statement from the CDC and the FDA, officials said the available data show that the vaccine's known and potential benefits outweigh the known and potential risks in adults. The vaccine is authorized for emergency use for anyone 18 and older. Both agencies said they have confidence that the vaccine is safe and effective in preventing COVID-19.

The joint statement said that based on the data the chance of developing the clots is very low "but the FDA and CDC will remain vigilant in continuing to investigate this risk." Doctors and other health care providers have also been made aware of the potential for the clots so they can properly treat any patients that may develop them.

Symptoms occur anywhere between 6 to 15 days after receiving the vaccine.

An Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices reported that there had been nine new confirmed cases of the rare blood clots, bringing the total to 15. The 15 cases were reported out of nearly 8 million vaccine doses given as of April 21, the committee reported. All the cases were in women and two of the cases were in women older than 50 while the rest were in women between the ages of 18-48.

Read More: J&J Vaccine: Feds Lift Recommended Pause In Michigan, Elsewhere