Washington Pauses Use Of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine

WASHINGTON — Washington state is ordering a complete pause of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine while the federal government reviews the vaccine's safety.

The pause comes at the request of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) who asked that health care providers stop administering the vaccine after it was linked to six cases of severe blood clotting in American patients. 6.8 million Americans have received the J&J shot, making these cases exceedingly rare.

None of the six patients were Washingtonians, according to the Washington State Department of Health (DOH).

Because the CDC's request was a "recommendation" and not a mandate, some states may continue to administer the J&J shot, but Washington, New Jersey and several others quickly announced Tuesday they would be following the recommendation and implementing statewide pauses on the vaccine's use.

"This action is being taken out of an abundance of caution based on the appearance of a rare but serious side effect including serious brain blood clots combined with low platelet counts in six patients, all women under 50," the DOH said. "The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will review these cases in the days ahead and will recommend guidance going forward."

Other local leaders have reaffirmed that their jurisdictions will not administer the vaccine until the CDC's review is complete, including Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan.

Several large chain pharmacies, like CVS and Wegmans, will also be halting administration of the vaccine nationwide.

It's a mixed blessing then, that the Evergreen State has received comparatively few doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Out of more than 4 million vaccine doses administered in Washington, only were 149,000 J&J shots, the DOH said. Plus the state had already announced a decline in its J&J allotments, and was expecting a shipment of under 13,000 doses of the vaccine this coming week.

That said, the pause is likely to impact some patients. It's already cancelled one mass vaccination event at the Angel Of The Winds Arena in Snohomish County.

Others may see more minor hiccups. The Tacoma - Pierce County Health Department, for example, as announced any patient at their clinics who had an appointment for a J&J will instead receive the Moderna vaccine.

Meanwhile, the DOH says Washingtonians who recently received the J&J should not be overly concerned, but should keep an eye out for a few severe symptoms.

"For those who got the vaccine more than a month ago, the risk of this complication is very low at this time," the agency said. "People who have received the J & J vaccine who develop severe headache, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath within three weeks after vaccination should contact their health care provider. It also demonstrates how well the robust vaccine safety monitoring systems work, since this potential safety concern was identified quickly and vaccines were paused to allow for further investigation."

The CDC says they believe the six patients who suffered blood clotting likely had a rare immune response to the vaccine.

Related: Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Pause: 6 Things To Know