PUMP THE BREAKS: Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine delayed in Europe as blood clot reports confirmed

Six cases of blood clots out of more than 6.8 million doses administered

CDC, FDA recommend US suspends use “out of an abundance of caution”

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Johnson & Johnson (J&J) advised in a statement yesterday it will be delaying rollout of its Janssen coronavirus vaccine in Europe after six reported cases of people developing blood clots in the United States.

“The safety and well-being of the people who use our products is our number one priority,” the pharmaceutical company said.

“We are aware of an extremely rare disorder involving people with blood clots in combination with low platelets in a small number of individuals who have received our COVID-19 vaccine.”

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have recommended a pause in the use of the Janssen vaccine “out of an abundance of caution”, and are reviewing data involving the six reported US cases out of more than 6.8 million doses administered.

Johnson & Johnson said it will also be reviewing those cases with European health authorities.

The pharmaceutical company added: “We have been working closely with medical experts and health authorities, and we strongly support the open communication of this information to healthcare professionals and the public.”

Minister of Health Renward Wells, who acknowledged the latest developments with the J&J vaccine, told reporters outside Cabinet yesterday that the government is continuing its efforts to source more vaccines for the country.

The Bahamas has received 33,600 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine through the World Health Organization (WHO)/Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) COVAX Facility and 20,000 doses as a donation from India last month.

Wells said the government expects to receive its next tranche of vaccines from COVAX in May and is also looking at other options, including the Africa Medical Supplies Platform (AMSP), where Caribbean countries have partnered with African countries to try to source additional vaccines.

He said the government is also in discussions with distributors and manufacturers in the United States.

“There’s only so many countries that actually produce vaccines globally and so The Bahamas is talking directly with these manufactures,” he said.