The FDA has approved a third vaccine against the Coronavirus from Johnson & Johnson. BBC. The vaccine is not as effective as the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine with it only being 66% in preventing infection. However the vaccine is effective in preventing serious illness in 85% of cases. In trials there were zero deaths to people administered the vaccine and no hospitalizations after 28 days. However, the vaccine seems less effective against other strains of the virus. Johnson & Johnson's vaccine has a couple advantages over the other vaccines in that it only requires one dose to be effective, and does not require cold storage. The vaccine also uses more traditional vaccine technology and is not an mRNA vaccine.
My Comment:
Fairly big vaccine news today. I wasn't sure if the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was going to be approved. I had read the reports from South Africa and Brazil where they said the vaccine simply wasn't effective against the strains there, compared to the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines that are effective against the new strains.
And even in the main studies it's clear that this vaccine isn't anywhere near as effective as the other two vaccines. Pfizer and Moderna's vaccines are 90%+ effective while Johnson & Johnson only got 66% effectiveness in preventing infection. Sure, preventing severe illness was at 85% and you are less likely to die if you get it but it still seems like it's a lot worse then the other two vaccines.
But the advantages the Johnson & Johnson vaccine has are major. Having it all be in one dose is a huge advantage. It will make it much easier to fully vaccinate people as they won't have to wait around for a 2nd dose. This will also reduce costs dramatically. I know a lot of family members who are frustrated too that they have gotten their first dose and had to wait around for weeks for a 2nd dose and this vaccine would solve that problem.
Having it not require cold storage helps with the logistical nightmare that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines have caused. Those vaccines require very cold temperatures and can spoil easily while the Johnson & Johnson one does not. This means the vaccine will be a lot easier to administer.
I think another advantage the Johnson & Johnson vaccine has is that it is a more traditional vaccine technology. A lot of people don't trust the experimental nature of the mRNA vaccines and have been hesitant to take them. With Johnson & Johnson being a more traditional vaccine perhaps people will be more willing to take it. On the other hand, you do not have any choice in which vaccine you get to take, it all depends on what is available.
I personally would like to weigh the three vaccine options as to what makes the most sense for me. As a low risk person in a secondary critical worker role I think I would prefer the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as it probably has a lower chance of side effects down the line. The lower effectiveness probably doesn't matter too much as I was at a low risk of severe illness anyways. But that isn't an option right now and I don't think it ever will be.
As for the virus itself it seems clear that infections are slowing down. The vaccines are a part of that but it's also the case that there just aren't as many people to infect at this point. I have always thought that total cases are a lot larger than what is reported as so many people get the virus without getting symptoms. My guess is that, combined with the vaccines, mean we are close to herd immunity.
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