RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia will pause its administration of the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine in the state while the federal government investigates reports of potentially dangerous blood clots.
The state will cease all Johnson & Johnson vaccines until the investigation is complete, Virginia State Vaccination Coordinator Dr. Danny Avula said in a news release.
In a joint statement Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration said they were investigating clots in six women that occurred 6 to 13 days after vaccination. The clots were observed in the sinuses of the brain along with reduced platelet counts — making the usual treatment for blood clots, the blood thinner heparin, potentially “dangerous.”
If you have an upcoming appointment for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, you will be contacted to reschedule that appointment, the news release said.
Avula said Virginia will continue its vaccine rollout with the two other authorized vaccines by Pfizer and Moderna.
"This pause is reassuring in that it demonstrates that the systems that are in place to monitor vaccine safety are working," Avula said in the release. "We look forward to a thorough review by federal health officials."
More than 6.8 million doses of the J&J vaccine have been administered in the U.S., the vast majority with no or mild side effects.