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Following Federal Guidance, New England States Pause Use Of Johnson & Johnson Vaccine

A health care worker administers a COVID-19 vaccine at the FEMA mobile unit in Bridgeport, Connecticut, in March.
Tony Spinelli
/
Connecticut Public
A health care worker administers a COVID-19 vaccine at the FEMA mobile unit in Bridgeport, Connecticut, in March.

All six New England states are pausing use of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The decisions follow a federal recommendation for a pause while investigators look into six cases of a rare and severe blood clot reported in women who received the vaccine.

With more than 6.8 million J&J doses administered in the U.S. as of Monday, the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said they were making the move out of an abundance of caution.

In Massachusetts, state data show more than 180,000 people had received the J&J vaccine by Tuesday morning, when the pause was announced. In Connecticut, the state said about 100,000 people had received that vaccine with “no reported serious adverse events.” Both states announced that none of the six blood clot cases were among their residents.

According to the FDA and CDC, six women between the ages of 18 and 48 developed a type of blood clot called cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, in combination with low levels of blood platelets, and symptoms occurred six to 13 days after vaccination.

“People who have received the J&J vaccine who develop severe headache, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath within three weeks after vaccination should contact their health care provider,” the agencies said in a joint statement.

Pharmacy giants CVS and Walgreens said they will pause their distribution of the J&J vaccine. Some clinics that were planned for J&J vaccine delivery are instead being canceled.

That includes one planned for Tuesday in Holyoke, Massachusetts, where 200 J&J shots were to be distributed, according to the provider, Behavioral Health Network. BHN said it has distributed about 1,000 doses of the J&J vaccine, and had more clinics planned for this week.

The shots have been coming from the state through an equity program designed to bring vaccines to hard-hit communities, including Springfield and Holyoke.

Jessica Deflumer-Trapp, executive vice-president of BHN, said any issue like this that could undermine the public's confidence is problematic. But she said it's also important that people feel safe with what's being put in their bodies.

“It takes us a minute to sort of stop, and reset,” she said, “and make sure that we have all the information that we need — so that when we are going out in the community, and educating people — especially people of color — about taking the vaccine, that we understand the long-term side effects as well.”

BHN is working to rebook people affected by cancelations so they can receive one of the other two vaccines.

At Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton, chief medical officer Estavan Garcia said they don't have any of the J&J vaccine on hand — just the two-dose varieties. He said the pause could have an impact on the overall vaccination effort, potentially undermining trust in vaccines.

The Connecticut Department of Public Health said it has informed vaccine providers to delay clinics that were going to offer the J&J vaccine, and offer an alternative vaccine if it’s available. “DPH will work with providers to minimize the disruptions from this announcement in the near-term to the extent possible,” it said, “but we anticipate that some cancellations will occur.”

The Connecticut DPH said a FEMA mobile vaccine unit in New Britain is working to modify its schedule, and will offer an alternative vaccine to J&J when it resumes. It also said the Griffin vaccine vans that are offering J&J have suspended their clinics for the day, with more information to come.

In Vermont, all state-run clinics that were set up to deliver the J&J vaccine on Tuesday were canceled. In New Hampshire, Gov. Chris Sununu had just received the J&J shot at a clinic over the weekend. The state is pausing delivery of that vaccine and says it's working with partners on alternative supplies for appointments scheduled Tuesday. Some agencies were planning to use the J&J vaccine at clinics and to homebound residents.

In Rhode Island, the state said no appointments for J&J vaccines were scheduled for Tuesday. State health officials directed agencies offering J&J vaccination appointments not to administer those doses.

And in Maine, the state paused administration of J&J — but it had just launched a mobile vaccine unit Monday, north of Portland, that was expected to administer at least 250 J&J doses daily. The state redirected doses of the Moderna vaccine to the unit so it can resume vaccinations Tuesday afternoon.

This report includes information from State House News Service.

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