Health and Medicine
State health officials say the pause in administering Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccines does not change key target dates, but it may still extend the vaccination process in places. At the same time, we have found there is an abundant local supply of Moderna and Pfizer doses awaiting appointments. If you have internet access and can get to any one of many area pharmacies, you can get a first Moderna or Pfizer dose on a same or next-day basis. WFIR’s Evan Jones has more:
Click here for the vaccinefinder.org vaccination finder
Click here for the findashot.org vaccination finder
Dr. Cynthia Morrow/VDH-VT photo
Following the FDA’s announcement it is putting the Johnson & Johnson 1-dose vaccine on hold as reports of extremely rare occurrences of blood clots have been detected in a handful of recipients, Dr. Cynthia Morrow with the local health district weighed in this morning. Morrow also said the Roanoke City and Alleghany Health District vaccine clinics should not be greatly impacted by the J&J “pause,” with sufficient inventory of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines on hand.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia is ceasing the use of all Johnson & Johnson vaccines while the federal government investigates rare reports of potentially dangerous blood clots among recipients of the vaccine.
Virginia State Vaccination Coordinator Dr. Danny Avula said in a statement Tuesday morning that the state was halting use of the vaccine until the federal investigation is complete.
“This pause is reassuring in that it demonstrates that the systems that are in place to monitor vaccine safety are working,” Avula said in the statement.
In a joint statement Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration said they were investigating unusual clots in six women that occurred 6 to 13 days after vaccination. The clots occurred in veins that drain blood from the brain and occurred together with low platelets. All six cases were in women between the ages of 18 and 48.
More than 6.8 million doses of the J&J vaccine have been administered in the U.S., the vast majority with no or mild side effects.
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(WFIR NEWS) — State health officials weren’t planning to administer all that many Johnson and Johnson vaccines this week anyway, so the pause does not change immediate plans all that much. That production problem at a Maryland plant led to millions of J&J doses being tossed out and as a result, Virginia’s allocation this week had already been cut by about 90% per cent to just 15,000 doses. Those are now on hold, but hundreds of thousands of Moderna and Pfizer doses are still arriving weekly. WFIR’s Evan Jones has more:
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VDH NEWS RELEASE: (Richmond, Va.) — We are closely monitoring the actions by the federal government to pause all Johnson & Johnson vaccinations while it investigates an extremely rare possible side effect. In Virginia, we will cease all Johnson & Johnson vaccines until this investigation is complete. If you have an upcoming appointment for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, you will be contacted to reschedule that appointment.
This pause is reassuring in that it demonstrates that the systems that are in place to monitor vaccine safety are working. We look forward to a thorough review by federal health officials. Meantime, we will continue Virginia’s vaccine rollout at this time with the other two authorized vaccines, developed by Pfizer and Moderna.
Dr Noell Bissell
As the New River Valley prepares for a mass vaccination event on Thursday at Lane Stadium – home of the football Hokies – the local health district director says they are still playing it by ear and day to day, when it comes to what vaccine brands will be on hand. The story from WFIR’s Gene Marrano:
A production mixup of some Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccines means Virginia is getting far fewer of those doses this week than first expected. But officials say they remain on track to meet two big target dates. The state health department expected close to 125,000 Johnson and Johnson doses this week, but actual number will be closer to 15,000. Still, state Vaccine Coordinator Doctor Danny Avula says Virginia will still administer more than 400,000 thousand first and second doses this week — although some people waiting their turn in Phase 2 may have to wait a little longer. More from WFIR’s Evan Jones:
The Virginia Department of Health reports a 6.1% positivity rate for COVID testing over the past 24 hours, the same rate as the previous day. Of the 1227 new cases reported, a total of 33 are in Roanoke City, Roanoke County, Salem and Botetourt County combined, with one new death reported in Roanoke and two new hospitalizations (one each) for the coronavirus in Botetourt and Roanoke Counties.
Dr. Cynthia Morrow/VDH-VT photo
Following a factory mixing problem in Baltimore that ruined 15 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson single-shot vaccine, the VDH says instead of an expected 125,000 doses of the J&J vaccine, the Commonwealth will receive only around 15,000 this week. Locally that doesn’t seem to be an issue, as WFIR’s Gene Marrano reports:
Morrow also says while the VDH has heard reports “anecdotally” about some adverse reactions to the J&J vaccine they do not appear to be widespread or severe – also noting that some recipients have had short term adverse reactions to the other vaccines as well.
Statewide 1700 new COVID cases have been reported in the past 24 hours statewide by the Virginia Department of Health – just 20 among Roanoke City, Roanoke County, Salem and Botetourt County. There are 3 new hospitalizations and no new COVID-related deaths locally reported as well.
A local teenager is honoring her brother James by organizing a golf tournament- with proceeds going to epilepsy research. WFIR intern reporter Alex Powell has the story:
see link to tournament below:
GM photo
Republican Congressman Ben Cline toured a Berglund Center mass vaccination site last week – yesterday it was Democratic US Senator Mark Warner’s turn at the first Phase 2-General Population clinic held locally. WFIR’s Gene Marrano was there as well and has the story: