Covid19: J&J Has Millions of Vaccine Doses, Halts Production at Dutch Plant

• Johnson and Johnson decided to temporarily close their Covid-19 vaccine production plant in Leiden
• They will resume production in a few months, but the manufacturer has not yet shared the exact date
• The manufacturer did not publicly announce the decision to pause production, thereby catching leaders of developing countries off-guard

LEIDEN - Johnson and Johnson (J&J) decided to temporarily close their Covid-19 vaccine production plant in Leiden as they believe that the millions of doses they have in stock is enough for the time being.

J&J will resume production in a few months, but the manufacturer has not yet shared the exact date. While the regular Covid-19 vaccine production is on pause, J&J has been developing a new vaccine that offers protection against a different virus.

“We continue to fulfill our contractual obligations in relation to the COVAX Facility and the African Union,” J&J said.

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Consequences of the plant shutting down

According to the New York Times, developing countries prefer to administer the J&J vaccine, because it only requires a single dose. However, the current halt on production could decrease the stockpile by 100 million doses.

J&J did not publicly announce the decision to pause production, thereby catching leaders of developing countries off-guard. The African Union, for example, first learned about it from news reports and not J&J themselves.

The Leiden plant is not the only Covid-19 vaccine production facility, but many of the others are awaiting regulatory approval to allow them to distribute what they manufacture, SABC News reports.

Reactions to halt in vaccine production

@mo4lo asked:

"During a pandemic?"

@ClarenceBaloyi believes:

"Probably to create a shortage then drive up demand again."

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Covid19: Dr Phaala encourages vaccination, says masks are here to stay

@Lushi1976 remarked:

"Too many side effects."

@Lebooo__ said:

"Amongst other things, I'll always be mad that this pandemic made me defend pharmaceutical companies."

@DaveLamula shared:

"Something fishy here."

Covid-19: Dr Phaala encourages vaccination, says masks are here to stay

In other news about the coronavirus, Briefly News previously reported that on 4 February, Dr Joe Phaala, the Minister of Health, updated South Africans on the current status of Covid-19 and related issues via a media briefing.

During his update, Phaala said that it is highly likely that people will need to wear face masks in public places for the foreseeable future. This is due to the global trend of enforcing mask mandates, and that Covid-19 is far from over, in his opinion.

According to News24, Phaala said that current research shows that people need to receive the Covid-19 vaccine to be protected from harmful effects linked to the coronavirus, such as severe symptoms, hospitalisation, and death.

Source: Briefly News