NEW YORK — With a green light from federal health officials, several states resumed use of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine on Saturday.
Among the venues where it's being deployed is the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where free vaccinations were available to anyone 18 or older. Among the other states ordering or recommending a resumption, along with Indiana, were New York, Virginia, Missouri and Michigan.
Those moves came swiftly after U.S. health officials said Friday evening that they were lifting an 11-day pause on vaccinations using the J&J vaccine. During the pause, scientific advisers decided the vaccine's benefits outweigh a rare risk of blood clot.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo released the following statement on Saturday:
"World-renowned public health experts from the federal government and our own independent state task force have reviewed the data and reaffirmed that the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine can resume. The state of New York will resume administration of this vaccine at all of our state-run sites effective immediately. The vaccine is the weapon that will win the war against COVID and allow everyone to resume normalcy, and we have three proven vaccines at our disposal. I urge every New Yorker to take whichever one is available to them first. The sooner we all get vaccinated, the sooner we can put the long COVID nightmare behind us once and for all."
New York State Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker also released a statement saying:
"Yesterday evening, following a thorough safety review, the CDC and FDA lifted the recommended pause on the COVID-19 Johnson & Johnson vaccine and said that the United States can resume the use of the vaccine for adults, 18 years of age and older. Following discussions with New York State's Clinical Advisory Task Force and Governor Cuomo, I recommend that New York State accept the federal recommendations and resume Johnson & Johnson vaccinations effective immediately.
"The data has shown the vaccine's known benefits far outweigh the potential and extremely rare risks, but we urge anyone with questions about the COVID-19 vaccines to speak with their healthcare provider. We will continue to communicate regular updates and guidance from the federal government to providers and the general public about the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and all vaccines on the market.
"We encourage all New Yorker's to get whichever vaccine is available to them, as quickly as possible, so we can finally defeat this virus and continue our path towards fully reopening our communities and economy."
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