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EU countries to receive Johnson & Johnson vaccines from mid-April

AFP
AFP - [email protected]
EU countries to receive Johnson & Johnson vaccines from mid-April
(FILES) This file photo taken on November 17, 2020 in London shows vials with Covid-19 Vaccine stickers attached and syringes with the logo of US pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson. - The European Medicines Agency said on March 9, 2021 that it is set to decide whether to authorise Johnson & Johnson's Janssen single-shot coronavirus vaccine for the EU on March 11. If approved by the Amsterdam-based regulator, the vaccine would be the fourth to get the green light for the 27-nation bloc, in a boost for its slow-starting vaccination programme. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)

Johnson & Johnson said on Monday it would start delivering its single-shot Covid vaccine to Europe on April 19th, giving the continent a boost as it struggles to speed up its vaccination drive.

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The pharmaceutical giant's jab was approved by European Union regulators in mid-March, following approval of vaccines made by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca.

The 27-nation EU has signed a firm order for 200 million J&J doses and an option for 200 million more.

As well as being the first that requires just a single injection rather than two, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is easier to store.

The EMA gave the green light after saying clinical trials involving volunteers in the United States, South Africa and South American countries found the J&J jab was 67 percent effective in preventing moderate-to-severe Covid globally.

The EMA's report said: "The trial found a 67% reduction in the number of symptomatic COVID-19 cases after 2 weeks in people who received COVID-19 Vaccine Janssen (116 cases out of 19,630 people) compared with people given placebo (348 of 19,691 people). This means that the vaccine had a 67% efficacy."

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The jab was the fourth to be endorsed for use in the EU after vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech , AstraZeneca-Oxford University and Moderna, and is recommended for those over 18 years of age, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said.

“With this latest positive opinion, authorities across the European Union will have another option to combat the pandemic and protect the lives and health of their citizens. This is the first vaccine that can be used as a single dose,” said Emer Cooke, EMA’s Executive Director after the jab was approved.

The study said the side effects from the COVID-19 Janssen vaccine were usually mild or moderate and cleared within a couple of days after vaccination, the EMA said.

Several European countries have enacted new restrictions to curb a surge of infections, as vaccination campaigns have been slower than in other countries such as the United States or Britain.

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Anonymous 2021/03/30 10:25
This is great! Thanks for the additional source. I think it's your last sentence that keeps being overlooked in reports on effectiveness. While the vaccine is not a 100% guarantee that you won't catch COVID (though it significantly helps), it was 100% effective in keeping you from dying. Getting sick is not the end of the world if the sickness doesn't go on to kill people. Maybe it's just me, but I wouldn't mind seeing this kill fewer people and have life open up a little more.
  • Anonymous 2021/03/30 10:27
    (My previous comment was meant to be in response to the comment and source provided by Ty, but the website doesn't group them that way... Sorry for the confusion)
Anonymous 2021/03/30 08:37
That's the one for me. Their talc is good as well!
  • Anonymous 2021/04/01 08:31
    Boggy apparently you can not choose! You have to take what you get offered. So fingers crossed it is JJ. I refuse unless I get JJ, and I think many 'younger unlikely to die from covid' people will. I am lucky as I will not get offered AZ, if they have not changed their mind before it's my age group. I have no intention to accept rmna vaccines, so they better be happy I will accept JJ and otherwhise I won't bother getting vaccinated at all. Let see what happens, let see or there are dodgy side effects after JJ, time will tell.
Anonymous 2021/03/30 07:37
It should be mentioned that this study included the B.1.351 variant while prior studies with Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna did not include this variant. Importantly against the most severe forms of covid it has 86% effectiveness, up to 90% after 1.5 months. Furthermore the study found it prevented 100% of hospitalizations and death related to Covid. https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/how-effective-johnson-johnson-vaccine-what-know-n1259652

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