Essentia Health to pause Johnson & Johnson vaccines

DETROIT LAKES (KDLM) – Following a recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the United States Food and Drug Administration, Essentia Health will pause administration of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine.

Six reported cases of severe blood clotting in individuals who’d recently received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are under review by the CDC and FDA. Those cases — all of which were in women between 18-48 years old — have occurred since April 12; over that same time period, more than 6.8 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine have been distributed.

According to a joint statement from the CDC and FDA: “Right now, these adverse events appear to be extremely rare. COVID-19 vaccine safety is a top priority for the federal government, and we take all reports of health problems following COVID-19 vaccination very seriously. 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.”

Essentia Health says they will continue to administer the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines to anyone aged 16 and older.