Pa. Health Department to pause regional vaccination clinic services, including Penn State site
Pennsylvania announced it would be following a federal recommendation to pause administration of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which includes putting a regional clinic in Centre County on hold until at least April 20.
“We really, at this stage, are going to be prudently pausing the regional vaccine clinics, specifically at the Bryce Jordan Center,” acting Health Secretary Alison Beam said during a Tuesday media briefing. “As soon as federal guidance was issued, we likewise followed suit and paused that clinic at this time until we await further guidance from the federal government.”
The announcement came after the federal government advised states to pause the use of the single-dose vaccine during an investigation into reports of rare blood clots and on the day all Pennsylvania adults became eligible to schedule a vaccination appointment.
The pause was put in place after six individuals reported blood clots within two weeks of receiving the J&J vaccine. All six of the cases were reported in women between the ages of 18 and 48. To date, 6.8 million Americans have received the J&J vaccine — meaning one in 1 million people who received the vaccine have been affected, Beam said.
“Safety is our paramount concern, and we are taking these steps out of an abundance of caution. We understand that this announcement may be challenging for those who are looking to get vaccinated, as well as those who have already received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine,” Beam said. “However, I want to emphasize that this action highlights the federal process, which monitors the safety and the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccines, which is working.”
Preliminary information indicates that none of the six cases occurred in Pennsylvania, but Beam said the state is waiting on confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The state-run BJC clinic opened Friday after receiving 3,000 J&J doses Wednesday. It was open through Monday and was originally set to reopen on Thursday.
It’s unclear how many doses were administered while the BJC clinic was open; 262,739 doses of J&J have been administered statewide.
Patients with health concerns who received the J&J vaccine are asked to contact their doctor, as well as patients who received a vaccine in the last three weeks and develop a severe headache, leg pain, shortness of breath or abdominal pain.
The CDC is convening an emergency meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunizations Practices on Wednesday to further review cases for any details on the significance of this rare occurrence.
“We have said these vaccines would be the most scrutinized and watched vaccines ever in history, and this step reflects this. The action today reflects the federal government’s commitment to protect Americans,” Beam said. “The protocols in place should give Pennsylvanians confidence in the safety and the effectiveness of the Pfizer and the Moderna vaccine.”
This story was originally published April 13, 2021 at 3:17 PM.
