The CEO of Pfizer said on Tuesday that the company has stepped up its vaccine production to deliver doses faster, after a break in the distribution of Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, wrote on Twitter that the company could complete an order for 300 million COVID-19 vaccines two weeks earlier, following guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which asked states to stop the distribution of the J&J vaccine.
Bourla wrote that his company is on track to complete the order for the 300 million doses it agreed to offer by the end of July two weeks earlier, adding that it could supply 10% more than agreed. initially by the end of May.
“. @ Pfizer has accelerated the production of our vaccine # COVID19 and can deliver 10% more doses in the US by the end of the month than previously agreed (220M in total) and can provide the 300 million that were agreed at the end July, two weeks In the fight against COVID-19, we are together in this, “he wrote on Twitter.
.@Pfizer accelerated our production # COVID-19 vaccine and can deliver 10% more doses in the US by the end of May than previously agreed (220M in total) and provides 300M fully agreed by the end of July two weeks earlier. In the fight against COVID-19, we are together in this.
– AlbertBourla (@AlbertBourla) April 13, 2021
The CDC urged states to stop distributing the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 single-dose vaccine earlier Tuesday, after six patients had problems with blood clotting after the vaccine was given.
Millions of doses of Johnson & Johnson vaccine have already been distributed in the United States. It is one of three vaccines that have received emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), along with Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna’s vaccine.
Johnson & Johnson said in a statement Tuesday that it would delay the launch of its COVID-19 vaccine across Europe in response to the CDC’s recommendation, while advising patients with symptoms, including shortness of breath or severe headaches after vaccination, to contact a healthcare professional.
“We are aware of an extremely rare disorder involving people with blood clots in combination with low platelets in a small number of people who have received our COVID-19 vaccine,” Johnson & Johnson said in a statement.
“We have worked closely with medical experts and health authorities and strongly support the open communication of this information to health professionals and the public,” the statement continued.
The CDC’s recommendation came in response to six patients in the United States, all women between the ages of 18 and 48, who had a “rare and severe type of blood clot” after receiving the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
CDC and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials intend to look into the cases, but have called for the vaccine to be discontinued in the meantime as a precaution.
The reason for the break, despite the low number of reported cases of clots, was to give doctors time to understand how to treat potential side effects, according to the CDC and FDA.
“This is important, in part, to ensure that the healthcare community is aware of the potential of these adverse events and can plan for appropriate recognition and management through the unique treatment needed for this type of blood clot,” officials said. two agencies said in a joint statement on Tuesday.
– Updated at 5:04 p.m.