Ventura County resumes administering J&J COVID vaccines
VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. - The County of Ventura announced that it will resume distributing the Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) COVID-19 vaccine after the CDC and FDA agreed to lift the pause on the vaccine on Friday.
This decision came after the CDC’s independent Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices reviewed data related to recent reports of a rare and serious type of blood clot that some people experienced after receiving the vaccine. Based on their review of all available data, both the CDC and the FDA determined that the vaccine is safe and effective in preventing COVID-19.
According to the CDC, to date there have been only 15 confirmed cases of the rare clotting among nearly 8 million total doses administered in the USA. All 15 victims have been female, which the county said means there is only a chance that two cases per one million doses may experience the clotting. The risk is higher among women between 18 and 49 years of age at seven possible cases per one million doses. For those who have a confirmed case of COVID-19, the risk of dying from it in the United States is 1 in 56.
The county said vaccine providers with doses of the J&J vaccine can resume administering the shots, provided they provide information from the updated Janssen fact sheet to any recipients of the vaccine.
“The three vaccines that are currently available through the FDA’s Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) remain the most powerful tools we have in reducing transmission, preventing serious illness and death, and eventually ending the COVID-19 pandemic that has claimed the lives of more than 1,000 people in Ventura County,” said Public Health Officer Doctor Robert Levin.
People who have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should contact their primary healthcare provider if they have concerns or if they develop severe symptoms of headache after 5 days of the receipt of the vaccine and abdominal pain, leg pain or shortness of breath within three weeks after vaccination. COVID-19 vaccine safety is a top priority for the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and Ventura County Public Health (VCPH). VCPH will continue to monitor the situation and look to the CDC for any additional future guidance.
The county said, to date, 21,885 residents have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. No serious adverse reactions have been reported yet.
For a breakdown of daily COVID-19 cases in Ventura County, click here.
