Gov. Charlie Baker does not expect the pause placed on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine by federal regulators to disrupt the state's vaccination plans.
"Because there's not that much change that's currently in the pipeline, I don't think it changes that much," Baker told reporters Wednesday from the Hynes Convention Center. The governor said that he has always thought of the newer, one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine "as a significant way to dramatically increase the delivery of the capacity we already have."
The FDA halted distribution of the Johnson & Johnson formula Tuesday after six women who took the vaccine developed serious blood clots. About 6.8 million people in the U.S. have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to date.
Baker said the state is "on track" with the vaccination goals set back in December, even with the state's bumpy appointment website rollout and now the pause in distributing the Johnson & Johnson shots.
Baker said the state, which had been using the single-shot vaccine for mobile vaccination clinics and at-home visits, will resume the use of Johnson & Johnson once federal officials deem it safe. The state's primary vaccination programs, based around private health providers, local health boards and mass vaccination centers, are built primarily around the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, Baker said.
"The J&J and the issues associated with that, the feds need to buckle down on and decide how they believe we should move forward," Baker said. "But in the meantime, we have very significant Pfizer and Moderna supplies, and we expect that to continue."
