Johnson and Johnson announced it would delay the rollout of its COVID-19 vaccine in Europe hours after US health officials called for authorities to pause using the vaccine.
“We have been reviewing these cases with European health authorities,” the company said in a statement Tuesday. “We have made the decision to proactively delay the rollout of our vaccine in Europe.”
Officials with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday that health agencies should immediately pause giving the shot, citing an “abundance of caution” over extremely rare reports of blood clotting among the millions of doses administered.
Six women between 18 and 48 years old who received the vaccine developed the clots within two weeks of being vaccinated, the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration said in a joint statement Tuesday.
Federal agencies immediately suspended using the shot, and many state and local health authorities followed suit Tuesday morning.
“We have been working closely with medical experts and health authorities, and we strongly support the open communication of this information to healthcare professionals and the public,” Johnson & Johnson said.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.