Apr 9, 2021 - Health

CDC says Johnson & Johnson vaccine supply will drop 80% next week

Shawna Chen

Photo of the entrance to a Johnson & Johnson building — Photo: Niels Wenstedt/BSR Agency via Getty Images

Allocations of Johnson & Johnson's coronavirus vaccine will plummet by 80% next week, according to data released by the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention.

Why it matters: J&J's single-dose shot is viewed as key to U.S. efforts to vaccinate enough Americans to reach herd immunity as soon as possible. A spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal that J&J is still aiming to meet its goal of delivering 100 million doses by June.

By the numbers: 4.9 million J&J doses were allocated to states, territories and federal agencies this week. Next week, that number will plunge to 700,000, according to the CDC.

It's unclear what caused the sharp decline, but federal officials have warned that supply will fluctuate week to week, according to the WSJ.
The week of March 1 saw 2.8 million doses distributed, while the following two weeks' supply fell to around 400,000 to 500,000 doses per week.

The big picture: Manufacturing challenges have plagued J&J from the start, heightening concerns that the company won't be able to meet its goals of 100 million U.S. doses by mid-year and up to 1 billion by the end of 2021.

Some states are already rewriting their distribution plan ahead of next week's decrease in supply. Several have publicly committed to reopening by a certain date.
A plant in Baltimore recently ruined 15 million J&J vaccines, though the incident was not expected to affect deliveries nationwide.
J&J declined to comment on next week's supply to the WSJ.

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CDC says Johnson & Johnson vaccine supply will drop 80% next week

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