Universities seek alternative vaccines amid J&J pause

Universities in different American states said on 13 April they would suspend giving the one-dose Johnson & Johnson (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine as federal officials evaluated reports of rare blood-clotting cases, writes Rick Seltzer for Inside Higher Ed.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the United States Food and Drug Administration issued a joint statement on 13 April recommending a pause in use of the one-shot vaccine “out of an abundance of caution”. Officials are reviewing six reported cases of a rare severe blood clot in people receiving the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. More than 6.8 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in the US.

The move prompted changes at the University of Akron. Also in Ohio, Kent State University officials said anyone who had been scheduled to receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at one of its clinics should schedule an appointment for other vaccines from Moderna or Pfizer, WOIO reported. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine had been shipped to colleges and universities in Ohio in an attempt to vaccinate students before summer break. Universities announcing changes in other states included Syracuse University and the State University of New York system, The Post-Standard reported.
Full report on the Inside Higher Ed site