Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday said it will delay its COVID-19 vaccine rollout in Europe, after the U.S. recommended a pause on administering it "out of an abundance of caution" after several women developed a rare blood clot disorder after getting the shot.
The state of play: J&J was set to send 50 million doses of its one-shot coronavirus vaccine to the European Union within the next few weeks. But the company now says it is reviewing cases of the "extremely rare" blood clotting with European authorities.
- The recommended pause in the U.S. was on account of six cases of blood clotting that occurred within 6.8 million recipients of the J&J vaccine.
Why it matters: Europe is in a race to quickly vaccinate its population in order to obtain herd immunity. The J&J vaccine offered an expedient option, requiring only one dose in order to reach maximum efficacy.
- The AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, which was authorized throughout Europe, is also facing confidence concerns over rare incidents of blood clotting.