Johnson & Johnson’s long-awaited one-dose Covid vaccine accounts for just 2.3 million of all shots given since March but the company insists it WILL deliver 20 million doses this month
- Since March 2, just 2.3 million coronavirus vaccine doses administered have been from Johnson & Johnson
- About nine times as many Americans have been receiving shots of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines
- J&J has promised 20 million doses to the U.S. by the end of March, but has only delivered 4.3 million to date
- White House officials believe states are holding back their supply while state officials argue they have used up all J&J doses they have received
Only five percent of all coronavirus vaccine doses administered since the beginning of March have been from Johnson & Johnson.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 45.3 million Americans have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose since March 2.
Of that total, 43 million people were given either the Pfizer-BioNTech or the Moderna immunization.
Just 2.3 million received the one-shot J&J jab, raising questions about how soon the pharmaceutical company can get doses to the U.S.
But the firm insists it will deliver 20 million doses to America by the end of the month.
Since March 2, just 2.3 million coronavirus vaccine doses of the more than 45 million administered have been from Johnson & Johnson (above)
J&J has promised 20 million doses to the U.S. by the end of March, but has only delivered 4.3 million to date (file image)
J&J’s vaccines combines genetic material from the new virus with the genes of the adenovirus – which causes the common cold – to induce an immune response.
It is the same technology the company used to make an experimental Ebola vaccine for people in the Democratic Republic of Congo in late 2019.
The J&J vaccine can be stored in normal refrigerator temperatures, making it easier to store than Pfizer or Moderna’s vaccines, which use newer mRNA technology.
Additionally, the fact that J&J’s inoculation is a single shot means it is easier to distribute, especially among people that have difficulty returning for a second appointment.
However, the average number of people receiving the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines is about nine times greater than those being given J&J.
In August 2020, the U.S. government signed an agreement to pay J&J more than $1 billion in exchange for 100 million doses of its vaccine.
The contract is priced at roughly $10 per vaccine dose, including a previous $456 million the government promised to J&J for vaccine development in March last year.
J&J has promised 20 million doses to the US by March 31, but only about 4.3 million doses have been delivered to date – a concern that White House officials expressed during a press briefing on Monday saying the company has ‘a lot of increases to do to meets its supply goal.’
In addition, last week, only about one million people were given the one-shot jab, making up six percent of all doses administered.
‘The information on our supply…still stands and we expect to deliver 20 million single-shot vaccines by the end of March,’ a J&J spokeswoman told DailyMail.com in a statement.
On average, more than two million people are being vaccinated every day in the U.S.
As of Tuesday, more than 81.4 million Americans – 24.5% of the population – have received at least one dose and 44.1 million – 13.3% – are fully immunized
The authorization of the J&J vaccine by the FDA was supposed to help jump-start the nation’s return to normalcy.
Instead, immunizations have lagged.
Two senior administration officials told Politico that they believe states are holding back doses to reach specific groups, such as homebound seniors.
However, several state officials, such as from Florida, have told the news organization they’ve used up all doses they received.
‘You can’t distribute the vaccine equitably if there aren’t enough doses to distribute,’ one unnamed health official told Politico.
The slowness of the rollout has made many wonder if the U.S. will be able to be somewhat back to normal by July 4 as President Joe Biden hopes.
As of Tuesday, more than 81.4 million Americans – 24.5 percent of the population – have received at least one dose and 44.1 million – 13.3 percent – are fully immunized.
More than two million people are being vaccinated every day.
