Washtenaw County Health Department to resume offering Johnson & Johnson vaccine
Sarah Parlette, Associate Content Producer, All About Ann Arbor
FILE - In this March 26, 2021, file photo, a member of the Philadelphia Fire Department prepares a dose of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination site setup at a Salvation Army location in Philadelphia. With the U.S. pause of the vaccine, authorities are weighing whether to resume the shots the way European regulators decided to -- with warnings of a very rare risk. New guidance is expected late Friday, April 23, after a government advisory panel deliberates a link between the shot and a handful of vaccine recipients who developed highly unusual blood clots. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File) (Matt Rourke, Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The Washtenaw County Health Department is planning to resume offering the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at clinics after an 11-day nationwide pause on the vaccine was lifted.
Initially, use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was paused based on recommendations from the FDA and CDC on April 13 after 15 confirmed cases of rare blood clots developed in recipients. More than 6.8 million doses of the J&J shot had been administered by April 12.
Health officials lifted the pause after a safety review from the CDC Advisory Panel and recommended that the vaccine be given to individuals 18 years and older.
The Washtenaw County Health Department plans to offer the vaccine as an option at county clinics soon. “This change may take a week or two”, the Health Department said in an update.
Sarah has worked for WDIV since June 2018. She covers community events, good eats and small businesses in Ann Arbor and has a Master's degree in Applied Linguistics from Grand Valley State University.
