Johnson & Johnson’s single coronavirus vaccine may be two-dose, the Biden administration said.
The vaccine, which was recently submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval, was hailed as one of the most effective ways to help increase supply and bring the drug closer. President Joe Biden to his target of 150 million shots in the first 100 days of his term.
J&J is currently on track to produce 100 million doses of its unique vaccine, but is trying to find a way to upgrade vaccination in the face of variants.
However, during a Washington Post Live event, Andy Slavitt, senior White House adviser in response to COVID-19, says the company is currently testing the effectiveness of its firing with a boost.
“Johnson & Johnson is currently evaluating the performance of its two-dose vaccine, that is, with its own booster,” Jonathan Capehart, a columnist in the newspaper’s outreach section, told host.
Pending the results of this, pending what the FDA has to say (if the vaccine is approved in the first place), there may be a second shot from Johnson & Johnson. “
The news raises concerns that the U.S. may not be able to immunize the population enough before the more contagious variants of the UK and South Africa become dominant in the United States.
Johnson & Johnson’s one-time coronavirus vaccine may actually be two-dose, Andy Slavitt, a senior White House COVID-19 response advisor, said Thursday. In the photo: J&J vaccine bottles against COVID-19 seen at Klerksdorp Hospital in South Africa, February 18
Slavitt (pictured) told the Washington Post Live that J&J is testing the effectiveness of his vaccine with a booster and that the single shot can be turned into two
The single shot was hailed as one of the most effective ways to help President Biden’s goal of 150 million doses administered in 100 days. Currently, the US vaccinates between 1.6 and 1.7 million people a day
The J&J vaccine was found to have 66% infection prevention in its major global trial, but was only 57% effective when tested in South Africa.
It is unclear whether this will delay FDA approval of the inoculation for emergency use authorization.
If regulators approved the vaccine, it would be the third shot made available to the U.S. public after the Pfizer Inc / BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc vaccines were approved in December.
Unlike the two currently authorized vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, there is no need to send frozen J & J’s.
Nor does it use the new mRNA technology, but rather combines the genetic material of the new virus with the genes of the adenovirus (which causes the common cold) to induce an immune response.
It is the same technology that the company made to make an experimental Ebola vaccine for people in the Democratic Republic of Congo in late 2019.
Currently, 40.2 million Americans (12.2% of the population) have received a dose and 15.4 million (4.6% of the population) are fully immunized.
Slavitt says states have gone from using 46% of vaccine supply or 75% since Biden took office on Jan. 20
Following J & J’s request, regulators will need time to analyze the data and an advisory committee will have to meet.
Last month, Dr. Paul Stoffels, head of J&J’s Scientific Office, said J&J was on track to launch the vaccine in March.
It is unclear whether this recent revelation from Slavitt will affect the release.
The United States has an agreement to buy 100 million doses of the J&J vaccine for $ 1 billion and the option to buy an additional 200 million doses.
On Thursday, Dr. Fauci confirmed that J&J is pursuing the goal of achieving that single-dose target and confirmed that the company is taking two-shot doses.
This values the vaccine at around $ 10 per dose, but the New Jersey pharmacist has pledged not to value its inoculations for profit.
In comparison, the United States pays $ 19.50 per dose for Pfizer vaccination and $ 32 to 37 per dose of Moderna jab.
Meanwhile, the jab developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University is estimated to cost between $ 3 and $ 4 per dose.
J&J said it plans to administer one billion doses by 2021 with production in the United States, Europe, South Africa and India.
President Biden aims to get 150 million shots in the arms of Americans by the end of April, his first 100 days in office
Slavitt told the Washington Post Live that states have gone from using 46% to 75% of their supply since Biden took office.
He added that there are currently enough vaccine purchases to vaccinate everyone in the United States before July, but that does not include the J&J vaccine.
“We’ll let the FDA make the decision and we don’t take anything on,” Slavitt said.
This is part of letting science lead and the White House not pushing aside.
