Johnson & Johnson plant pauses Covid vaccine manufacturing, file says

Syringes and a field of Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

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The one Johnson & Johnson facility recently making usable batches of the corporate’s single-shot coronavirus vaccine has briefly halted its manufacturing, a brand new file stated Tuesday.

The Netherlands-based plant has as a substitute occupied with making a unique, most likely extra successful vaccine aimed toward a unique virus, The New York Occasions reported, mentioning folks acquainted with the topic.

The pause in manufacturing on the Leiden facility, which started overdue ultimate yr and is anticipated to ultimate a couple of months, may just cut back the provision of J&J’s Covid vaccine by means of masses of tens of millions of doses, a type of folks informed the Occasions.

It’s unclear whether or not vaccine provides were been suffering from the corporate’s transfer, in line with the file. J&J is getting ready to have the Leiden plant restart Covid vaccine manufacturing in March, the Occasions reported.

J&J spokesman Jake Sargent did not at once remark at the Occasions’ article. He informed CNBC in a commentary the corporate is “occupied with making sure our vaccine is to be had the place individuals are in want,” and that it’s enjoyable its tasks to the global teams making an attempt to spice up Covid vaccine get entry to.

J&J is constant to ship batches of the vaccine fabrics to websites that bottle and bundle doses, and “we recently have tens of millions of doses of our Covid-19 vaccine in stock,” Sargent stated.

“We’re pleased with the paintings of our many trade companions and the collaborations we now have evolved to provide our COVID-19 vaccine,” he stated.

Polls display that many American citizens have taken a skeptical eye towards J&J Covid vaccine, which is the one one authorized by means of the U.S. Meals and Drug Management that calls for only a unmarried shot as a number one dose, as opposed to the two-dose routine of vaccines produced by means of Pfizer and Moderna.

The FDA ultimate yr advisable pausing using the J&J vaccine following a small choice of studies of recipients creating uncommon blood clots. It was once additionally discovered to be much less efficient in opposition to the fatal delta variant that emerged ultimate yr.

However a number of research have proven the shot stays efficient at combating hospitalization and dying from Covid, and a booster dose has been proven efficient in protective in opposition to serious sickness from the extremely transmissible omicron variant.

The J&J vaccine could also be more uncomplicated to move and distribute, owing to the truth that it calls for only one dose and can also be saved with out a freezer, expanding get entry to to those who would possibly another way be not able to get totally vaccinated.

Learn the whole file from The New York Occasions.