By Lauran Neergaard and Matthew Perrone Associated Press
WASHINGTON – The U.S. is getting a third vaccine to prevent COVID-19, as the Food and Drug Administration cleared a Johnson & Johnson survey on Saturday that works with just one dose instead of two.
Health experts are anxiously awaiting a one-to-one option to speed up vaccinations, as they fight a virus that is already killing more than 510,000 people in the US and mutating in increasingly worrying ways.
The FDA said that J & J’s vaccine provides strong protection against the most important aspects: serious illnesses, hospitalizations and deaths. One dose was 85% protective against the most serious COVID-19 disease, in a massive study spanning three continents – protection that has remained strong even in countries like South Africa, where the varieties of most concern are spreading.
“The more vaccines that can affect us effectively, the better,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the leading American expert in infectious diseases, said before the FDA ruling.
Shipments of single doses to be divided between states can start as early as Monday. By the end of March, J&J said it was expected to deliver 20 million doses to the US, and 100 million by the summer.
J&J is also seeking permission for the emergency use of the vaccine in Europe and at the World Health Organization. Worldwide, the company aims to produce approximately 1 billion doses worldwide by the end of the year. On Thursday, the island state of Bahrain became the first to use it.
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Scientific Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.