Berkeley, California (Friday, April 23, 2021) - Today the CDC and FDA announced they would accept the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) recommendations to lift pausing on the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine for all adults and to add warnings and make more detailed information available about the possible risks of developing a very rare, but potentially dangerous, blood clotting disorder after vaccination.
Alameda County and City of Berkeley will align with other Bay Area counties and will plan to resume the use of our modest, existing supply of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as quickly as possible. We recognize that rebuilding confidence in the vaccine may require additional time and education.
While we are still waiting for the Western States Scientific Safety Review to complete its evaluation, we concur with ACIP’s findings that the benefits of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine far outweigh the risks and that we can continue to administer this life-saving vaccine safely to Alameda County residents.
We will work with our community organizations and partners to disseminate information about Johnson & Johnson, as well as the other two available COVID-19 vaccines. All currently approved vaccines are proven to be highly effective at preventing hospitalization or death from COVID-19. We remind residents that the best vaccine is the first one offered to them.
The pause on use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was the result of the systems that monitor vaccine safety working correctly. Adverse events following vaccination should be reported to the CDC/FDA Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). The FDA Emergency Use Authorizations for the COVID-19 vaccines require reporting of severe vaccine-associated adverse events to VAERS.
People who have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should contact their primary health care provider if they have concerns or if they develop severe headache, abdominal pain, leg pain or shortness of breath within three weeks after vaccination. The state requests that all providers notify their local public health jurisdictions within one day regarding cases of thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) following receipt of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine.
Alameda County supports vaccine choice whenever possible. People should become familiar with potential vaccine side effects, including the rare but serious potential for TTS following Johnson & Johnson, and are encouraged to discuss any concerns with their healthcare provider. Some women under 50 may prefer one of the mRNA vaccines (Pfizer or Moderna), which do not carry the risk for this rare side effect.
COVID-19 vaccine safety continues to be a top priority. We will continue to monitor the situation and look to the CDC for any additional future guidance.
This is a joint statement issued by the City of Berkeley and Alameda County.
