FDA approves Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine single dose for emergency use

*The US Food and Drug Administration advisory committee finds Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 one-dose vaccine safe and effective, as approves it for emergency use as the third approved vaccine in the supply chain

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

In order to ease the schedule of appointments to get vaccinated without wasting no time, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials met over the weekend to grant emergency use authorisation (EUA) to Johnson & Johnson’s Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine.

Earlier, an FDA advisory committee had concluded a day-long meeting by recommending emergency use of the vaccine, finding that it is safe and effective in preventing the virus, reports Bloomberg.

It was learnt that eligible Americans who have been frustrated in trying to schedule an appointment to get vaccinated may suddenly find it is easier with the latest vaccine approval for emergency use.

Johnson & Johnson said it has millions of doses of the vaccine that it can begin distributing this week.

Acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock said: “The authorisation of this vaccine expands the availability of vaccines, the best medical prevention method for COVID-19, to help us in the fight against this pandemic, which has claimed over half a million lives in the United States.”

Woodcock stated that there are now three approved vaccines in the supply chain and that all of them met standards set out in an “open and transparent scientific review process.”

In the meantime, distribution of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine has begun in the United States.

The company has already started shipping its COVID-19 vaccine to distribution points and expects to deliver enough by the end of March 2021, to enable the full vaccination of over 20 million people in the country.

The vaccine holds an advantage over the two previously approved vaccines because it only requires a single dose.

Part of the distribution bottlenecks surrounding the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines have occurred because they require two shots, both of which have to be scheduled at the same time.