Date Published: 22/04/2021
ARCHIVED - First Janssen coronavirus vaccine doses arrive in the Region of Murcia
ARCHIVED ARTICLE
The single-dose vaccine will help to accelerate the immunization of those in their 70s
Following the European Medicines Agency’s advice that the single-dose Janssen coronavirus vaccine is sufficiently safe to be used on the general population delivery has been taken of the first 4,650 doses of the product to reach the Region of Murcia, where initially they will be administered principally to people aged between 70 and 79.
This delivery is the result of the first 146,000 Janssen doses having been received by Spain, with that total expected to rise to 300,000 by the end of April and 5.5 million before the end of June, enabling the immunization campaign to be accelerated still further. At present 45.4 per cent of all people in their 70s in Spain have received their first jab, while only 3.3 per cent have been given the second vaccine dose.
The first Janssen vaccines to arrive in Murcia were delivered to the Hefame site in Santomera, where they are being stored at a temperature of between 2 and 8 degrees before the order is given by the regional health authority for them to be distributed to vaccination centres. Although this product achieves a more rapid protection against Covid-19 infection due to only one dose being required, it is also reported to offer a lower level of protection than the vaccines created by Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca: the level of immunization is stated at 66 per cent against general infection, rising to an effectiveness level of 86 per cent in preventing serious illness and the need for hospital treatment, according to the clinical studies carried out.
The Janssen product has also been shown to be effective in protecting against the British, South African and Brazilian strains of coronavirus, and a further advantage is that, unlike the Pfixer vaccine, it does not have to be stored at very low temperatures: it should not be frozen and can be kept between 2 and 8 degrees for three months, and this makes it far easier to use in rural areas where vaccines have to be transported to relatively remote locations.
As yet no final decision has been made in Murcia regarding exactly when the first Janssen vaccines will be administered, but in other regions the starting date has been set for the coming weekend.
The latest data relating to the Murcia region shows a stabilisation of the pandemic and Murcia continues to report one of the lowest rates in the country.