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COVID-19 vaccines

Pause on Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine Hinder Reaching Marginalized Communities

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Public health experts worry that the pause on administering the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine will hinder efforts to reach marginalized, vulnerable populations, including communities of color. The one-and-done nature of the J&J COVID-19 shot and less stringent storage requirements made it ideal for homebound people, those in underserved neighborhoods, and rural, remote areas with limited healthcare access.

Key Takeaways:

  • The pause on J&J vaccine has raised concerns about its impact on marginalized communities, particularly communities of color, which have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19.
  • The J&J vaccine's one-and-done nature and less stringent storage requirements made it ideal for homebound people, those in underserved neighborhoods, and rural, remote areas with limited healthcare access.
  • Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, emphasized the need to consider equity considerations when making decisions about the vaccine.
  • Dr. Camille Nelson Kotton, clinical director of Transplant and Immunocompromised Host Infectious Diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital, expressed concerns that the pause may fuel increased hesitancy and lack of availability in communities of color.
  • The pause alone may contribute to vaccine hesitancy, particularly in communities of color, said Dr. Kotton.
  • Officials need to use simple terminology and make it clear that the risk from COVID-19 infection is far greater than any of the risks from the vaccines, Dr. Kotton said.
  • Dr. Marina Del Rios, director of social emergency medicine and associate professor of emergency medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago, emphasized the importance of accurate information about the vaccines and explained that the pause proves monitoring of vaccine safety is happening.
  • The Biden administration says the J&J halt won't cause an overall vaccine shortage because it represents a small percentage of shots.
  • According to Dr. Robert Murphy, executive director of the Institute for Global Health at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, the pause is making distribution to underserved communities more difficult.

Statistics:

  • More than 7 million Americans received the J&J vaccine before the pause (Source: CDC).
  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported a handful of cases of rare blood clots and low platelet counts within two weeks of getting vaccinated, resulting in one death and one hospitalization.
  • The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices met to discuss the cases and will meet again in about a week or 10 days to review data from the more than 3.7 million J&J shots administered in the 2.5 weeks before the April 13 halt (Source: CDC).
  • The J&J vaccine's pause represents a small percentage of shots, according to the Biden administration.

Sources:

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • Food and Drug Administration
  • Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
  • Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention
  • Massachusetts General Hospital
  • University of Illinois at Chicago
  • Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
  • Institute for Global Health

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