Coffee Regional Medical Center (CRMC) paused administering the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) single-dose COVID-19 vaccine in response to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) joint announcement to pause the vaccine.
A rare type of blood clot occurred in a very small number of participants, prompting this action. This side effect was not included on the list of potential adverse side effects that were part of the emergency use authorization for J&J, therefore the recommendation to pause was issued. While officials are stressing that this side effect appears to be extremely rare, this decision was made out of an abundance of caution.
As these cases are further assessed and reviewed, Coffee Regional urges anyone who has received the J&J vaccine in the recent three-week period to seek immediate medical attention if they experience a severe headache, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath.
CRMC will continue to prioritize vaccine safety, following the guidelines of the CDC and FDA. Both the Pfizer and the Moderna COVID-19 vaccines will remain available at our vaccine clinics at no cost to our community. To find out more about how you can be vaccinated, visit us online at www.coffeeregional.org/coronavirus