With the pause on Johnson & Johnson vaccines grabbing headlines, experts worry that the news could complicate efforts to convince those who are on the fence about getting vaccinated against COVID-19.
Just one day after Gov. Andy Beshear set a goal of 2.5 million vaccinations with the promise of lifting most capacity restrictions once met, he says the state was hit with another curveball — news that federal agencies were recommending a freeze on use of the J&J vaccine over six cases of a rare blotting complication.
Beshear was frank about the possible effect.
"This doesn't help," the governor acknowledged. "Our goal is going to have to be to communicate and communicate and communicate, especially with those that may have been leaning toward getting vaccinated if it was the J&J. What does this news do to their psyche or where they are?"
Officials are hoping for a resolution that preserves confidence in the one-shot vaccine, which is in many ways perfectly tailored for harder-to-reach communities, but Public Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack said residents already have reason to be reassured.
"We have in place really robust surveillance systems to look for these very uncommon instances to find it, and it's very reassuring that six people out of 6.8 million-plus people is like finding needles in a haystack — every needle is important and every person is critical, but in this case they found it quick," Stack commented.
Health officials are also quick to note that the risks presented by COVID-19 itself are still far higher, with a doctor who worked on COVID-19 vaccine trials telling CNBC developing blood clots from the virus is more probable than the apparent likelihood of developing them from the J&J vaccine.
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