Detroit this week turned down 6,200 doses of the newly authorized Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine
LANSING, Michigan – Detroit this week turned down 6,200 doses of the newly authorized Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine, which prefers shots from Pfizer and Moderna, but said Friday it will accept J&J doses in the next award from the state.
Mayor Mike Duggan said Thursday that residents should get the “best” vaccines – from Moderna and Pfizer – which are contrary to the guidance of top state and federal health officials who are wary of comparing the three vaccines and note that all have strong protection bids against the worst results.
Duggan also said the award of 29,000 doses of Pfizer and Moderna “covers everyone who wanted a vaccine this week.” On Friday, he called J&J vaccines “an important part of our expansion of vaccination centers.”
No other local health department has denied the 82,700 J&J shots sent to Michigan this week, the health department said.
Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, Michigan’s chief medical officer, said earlier this week that people offered the J&J vaccine should “take it because falling … can be the difference between life and death.” In a statement, she cites differences in when and where each company conducted their studies, with research on Moderna and Pfizer before the variants began to spread.
In the US, the two-dose Pfizer and Moderna shots were 95% protective against symptomatic COVID-19. The effectiveness of J & J from 85% against severe COVID-19 dropped to 66% when moderate cases were incorporated. The Food and Drug Administration reported that, like its predecessors, the J&J shot had strong protection against serious illness, hospitalization, and death. .
“All the vaccines are safe and effective and I recommend that all vaccines be offered in all communities,” Khaldun said.
Andy Slavitt, special adviser on the Coronavirus in the White House, said on Friday that the White House had spoken to the Detroit mayor’s office, calling the situation a ‘misunderstanding’.
“In fact, he’s very keen on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine,” Slavitt said of Duggan.
As of Wednesday, 11% of Detroit residents, 16 years and older, have received at least one dose. The nationwide rate was 19%.
Detroit this week extended the vaccinations to any resident who is a factory worker, regardless of their age or where they work. Non-residents can also get a chance if they manufacture in the city.
State spokesman Bob Wheaton received 6,200 J&J doses to health departments in provinces with the lowest vaccination rates of 65 years and older.
The J&J vaccine is manufactured using a cell line derived from an aborted fetus, which has caused moral concern among Catholic leaders. The chairmen of the American Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committees on Doctrine and Abortion said the vaccines were preferable to Pfizer or Moderna “if one could choose the vaccine.”
A $ 4.2 billion COVID-19 aid plan approved by Republican lawmakers in Michigan this week includes a provision that requires vaccine recipients to be informed if and how their vaccine was developed with aborted fetal tissue or human embryonic stem cells. Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer can declare the item unenforceable.
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Associated Press author Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this report.
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