Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine has affected production, which could delay the delivery of millions of life-saving shots in two months, according to a report on Wednesday.
The pharmaceutical giant, which pledged to have 12 million single-dose jabs by the end of February, warned health officials that the firm has fallen behind, according to Politico.
It may now take Johnson & Johnson until the end of April to catch up with this original projection, a person informed on the matter reported at the exit.
But a representative of the pharmaceutical giant denied that it experienced a slowdown in production, saying the company “is confident in our ability to meet our supply commitments for 2021.”
“We are still in active discussions with regulators, including the approval and validation of our manufacturing processes,” the representative said. “Operation Warp Speed is working with Johnson & Johnson to increase and maximize the manufacture of the Janssen vaccine … Making projections right now is premature.”
On Monday, co-director of Operation Warp Speed, Moncef Slaoui, hinted that there may be a delay in Johnson & Johnson’s initial target of 12 million, and said doses of a “digit of a million “would probably be delivered before the second half of February.
The company, which has pledged to release 100 million doses by the end of June, will apply for FDA emergency approval for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate later this month.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is considered essential to combat the pandemic in part because it requires only one dose and does not need to be stored at temperatures below zero.
In contrast, Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two separate doses. The Pfizer vaccine should be stored at less than 94 degrees Fahrenheit.