As COVID-19 variants spread, US ramps up vaccinations, surveillance
Johnson & Johnson vaccine seeks approval
The Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine is approximately 72 percent effective, but only requires a single dose.
ATLANTA - The Johnson and Johnson vaccine, which was about 72% effective at preventing mild to moderate COVID-19 in the US, did not quite deliver the bang of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, which proved about 95% effective.
But, the vaccine a one-shot deal that could make it easier to protect Americans quickly.
The US is vaccinating about 1.2 million Americans a day, and there is pressure to pick up the pace, now that 3 more contagious strains of the coronavirus have all popped up in this country.
Dr. Anthony Fauci says the British variant, known as B.1.1.7., which has been tied to 379 cases in 29 states as of January 27, 2021, could be a dominant strain in the US by late March or early April.
"This all tells us that it is the incentive to do what we've been saying all along: to vaccinate as many as we can, as quickly as possibly we can, Dr. Fauci says. "Because, when you do that, you prevent replication and replication is essential for mutation."
The CDC is stepping up its efforts to figure out where the mutant strains are spreading.
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky says the US has dramatically stepped up surveillance in the last 10 days, partnering with commercial labs to perform genomic sequencing and working closely with state health departments.
"We're now asking for surveillance from every state, at least 750 surveillance strains per week," Dr. Walensky says. "And, we have 7 collaborations across universities to scale up surveillance to the thousands per week."
There are questions about how well the vaccines we have will work against these new variants, especially the South African variant, know as B.1.351.
Dr. Fauci says manufacturers are already working on developing vaccine booster that could target specific mutants.
"We'll have to be nimble, to just adjust readily, to make versions of the vaccine that are specifically directed towards whatever mutation is actually prevalent at any given time," Fauci says.
The Johnson and Johnson vaccine successfully prevented 85% of severe COVID 19.
If it is approved, it could help speed up the US vaccine rollout.
"This is a single-shot vaccine, in which you start to see efficacy anywhere from 7 to 10 days following the first and only shot," Dr. Fauci says.
He says the vaccine is also inexpensive and easy to ship and store, requiring only refrigeration.
Johnson and Johnson plans to apply for an emergency use authorization of its vaccine next week.
If it is approved by the FDA, the company says it could have about 100 million doses ready to ship by June.
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