The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended today that distribution of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 vaccine be temporarily paused amid investigations into blood clotting among a small number of recipients. According to the agencies, the potential side effect has been reported among six people about 1-2 weeks after the shots were administered.
This is hardly the kind of news anyone wants to hear as the U.S. vaccine rollout races rising coronavirus cases in many states. But it's too soon to panic about the future of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, as my colleague Alice Park reports. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you process this news:
So far, very few recipients have experienced blood clotting issues. Nearly 7 million people have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in the U.S., and only six clotting cases have been reported. "Any time you vaccinate millions of people, you expect some adverse events," Alice tells me. "It should reassure people that the FDA and CDC are taking these half-dozen reports and investigating them quickly, so they can get a better understanding of what the real risks are."
If you've already received the Johnson & Johnson shot, you should keep an eye out for certain side effects. If you develop headaches, severe abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath up to three weeks after you've been vaccinated, call your doctor.
The Johnson & Johnson shot isn't critical to the broader U.S. rollout. The J&J vaccine accounts for only about 5% of the nearly 200 million COVID-19 shots administered in the country so far, White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said in a statement today.
The pause is a sign that regulators are being careful. The suspension gives health care providers time to learn how to recognize and treat the clots, according to Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biological Evaluation and Research. Alice reminds me that after some cases of anaphylactic shock were reported among participants in the Pfizer-BioNTech trials, regulators added a 15-minute waiting period in case recipients have an allergic reaction.
Any negative vaccine news is bound to cause some anxiety. But as with everything else related to the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the best things we can do is to arm ourselves with information from a reputable source like Alice, who has tirelessly reported on the vaccines' development, authorization and rollout for months.
More than 245.3 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been shipped to various U.S. states as of this morning, of which 192.2 million doses have been administered thus far, according to TIME's vaccine tracker. About 35.2% of the overall U.S. population has received at least one dose, and about 22.7% of Americans have been completely vaccinated.
Amid a punishing second wave of the coronavirus, India's health ministry said today that it will approve all coronavirus vaccines for domestic use that have received emergency authorization from the World Health Organization or regulators in the U.S., the U.K., the European Union or Japan, the Associated Press reports. The ministry says the goal is to make a "basket of vaccines" accessible in the 1.4 billion-person country. However, as India is a major manufacturer of coronavirus vaccines for use around the world, its decision could lead it to use doses that it may have otherwise exported, complicating other countries' rollouts.
The tiny Asian kingdom of Bhutan has mounted one of the world's most impressive vaccination campaigns, inoculating nearly 94% of eligible adults in less than two weeks (most adults are eligible there, save for pregnant women and a few other groups). More than 472,000 people in Bhutan over the age of 18 have received at least one dose, accounting for about 62% of the country's total population of 763,000. Bhutanese health minister Dasho Dechen Wangmo said in a statement that the country's vaccination program has been driven by a "sense of purpose that each of us is embracing to protect our country and the people we love."
TODAY'S CORONAVIRUS OUTLOOK
The Global Situation
More than 136.5 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 1 a.m. E.T. today, and more than 2.9 million people have died. On April 12, there were 454,145 new cases and 8,407 new deaths confirmed globally.
Here's how the world as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
And here is every country with over 2 million confirmed cases:
B.1.1.7, a coronavirus variant first detected in the United Kingdom that's now driving spikes in Europe and the U.S., doesn't seem to be causing more deaths or more severe disease, according to two new studies. As my colleague Alice Park reports, researchers reported new evidence that the variant is more transmissible—but also found that it doesn't seem to have a big effect on reinfection. In addition, the data suggest existing vaccines are effective against the variant.
The World Health Organization today urged countries to halt the sale of live wild animals in traditional food markets, warning that such bazaars can enable pathogens like COVID-19 to spread to new hosts, including humans. The WHO recommended that countries follow new guidelines that call for better hygiene and sanitation, among other things, to ensure the markets are safe.
Bangladesh is pausing most international and domestic flights starting tomorrow to curb a surge in COVID-19 cases, Al Jazeera reports. Flights involving essential services, such as medical evacuations, will be exempt. Bangladesh is also set to start a seven-day lockdown tomorrow; transportation services, offices and factories will be closed for the duration, per the Dhaka Tribune. Nearly 136,000 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in Bangladesh over the last month, while fewer than 1% of the 163 million-person population is vaccinated.
The Situation in the U.S.
The U.S. had recorded nearly 31.3 million coronavirus cases as of 1 a.m. E.T. today. Nearly 563,000 people have died. On April 12, there were 69,486 new cases and 455 new deaths confirmed in the U.S.
Here's how the country as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
Following a rule change by acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock, people seeking abortions during the COVID-19 pandemic can once again receive prescriptions for mifepristone pills via telemedicine and mail delivery without visiting a medical provider's office in person, the AP reports. Woodcock's decision, which she said was based on studies that "do not appear to show increases in serious safety concerns" among abortion patients who don't visit a healthcare facility, reverses a Trump Administration policy that was upheld by the Supreme Court in January.
Selena Gomez will host a benefit concert for advocacy group Global Citizen on May 8 aiming to raise money and awareness for the global vaccination effort, the organization announced today. Jennifer Lopez, Eddie Vedder, Foo Fighters, J Balvin and H.E.R. will perform at the event, "VAX LIVE: Concert to Reunite the World," which will be livestreamed on ABC, ABC News Live, CBS, YouTube, iHeartMedia at 8 p.m. E.T. Global Citizen aims to help fill a $22.1 billion shortfall among the WHO's COVID-19 initiatives, including the COVAX vaccine sharing program.
ArcLight Cinemas and Pacific Theatres locations will not reopen as pandemic restrictions ease, the movie theater chains' parent company announced yesterday. "This was not the outcome anyone wanted, but despite a huge effort that exhausted all potential options, the company does not have a viable way forward," ArcLight said in a statement yesterday. About 300 screens will be closed, including those of Hollywood's iconic Cinerama Dome.
All numbers unless otherwise specified are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of April 13, 1 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
India's Outbreak May Be the World's Worst
India has officially reported 13.5 million COVID-19 cases, but the country's low rate of testing means it may actually have as many as 400 million cases, as TIME's Billy Perrigo reports. Read more here.
When Vaccinated People Get Sick Anyway
Although COVID-19 vaccines offer powerful protection against the virus, some recipients still get sick anyway, as NPR's Rob Stein reports. Scientists are working to understand why. Read more here.
Indonesians Mark an Unusual Ramadan
Amid rising COVID-19 cases in Indonesia—the country with the world's largest Muslim population—many mosques are open for Ramadan prayers, but they must enforce social distancing and other public health guidelines, the AP reports. Read more here.
Gray Hair? She Doesn't Care
As the pandemic has made it risky to visit salons, some young women—including the Washington Post's Maura Judkis—embraced their natural grays, and are claiming a new community as "silver sisters." Read more here.
Thanks for reading. We hope you find the Coronavirus Brief newsletter to be a helpful tool to navigate this very complex situation, and welcome feedback at coronavirus.brief@time.com. If you have specific questions you'd like us to answer, please send them to covidquestions@time.com.
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Today's newsletter was written by Tara Law and edited by Alex Fitzpatrick.
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