By joel bubble ben @ Shutterstock.com
The Miami Herald reports on Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose COVID-19 vaccine, writing:
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration released a report on Wednesday that says the one-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine has a “favorable safety profile with no specific safety concerns,” clearing the way for emergency use authorization.
A committee of scientific experts will meet on Friday to discuss the vaccine’s safety and efficacy, as it did for the authorized Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna shots. If the group decides to recommend the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for FDA authorization, the shot will become the nation’s third COVID-19 vaccine, joining the fight against the pandemic spurred by more contagious variants.
The vaccine requires one dose and can be stored for three months at normal temperatures, easing distribution efforts and accelerating vaccination rates compared to the two-dose Pfizer and Moderna shots that require ultra cold refrigeration, which some regions lack access to.
Dr. Paul Stoffels, chief scientific officer for Johnson & Johnson, said in January that the results “represent a promising moment.”
“The potential to significantly reduce the burden of severe disease, by providing an effective and well-tolerated vaccine with just one immunization, is a critical component of the global public health response.”
The Phase 3 clinical trial, which included nearly 44,000 participants 18 years and older, found that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was overall 66% effective at preventing moderate to severe COVID-19 in the lab at least 28 days after getting jabbed.
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