Despite J&J production setback, El Paso officials say county will adapt to meet vaccination needs
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Texas Department of State Health Services officials say the state will receive less vaccine this week due to a decrease of roughly 350,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The reduction falls in line with national trends. U.S. officials expect the country will see an 85% drop in vaccine doses from Johnson & Johnson this week, as the company works to resolve issues at a Baltimore production plant.
Still, despite this week's setback, vaccine allocation in Texas has continued to grow over the past few months. DSHS data shows that El Paso County was allocated 6,825 doses of coronavirus vaccines during the week starting December 12. The county was allocated more than 60,000 doses during the week starting April 5.
El Paso County officials have said the Johnson and Johnson vaccine can play a unique role in our region, particularly among hard-to-reach populations. It's the only coronavirus vaccine on the market that requires just one dose.
"That makes it particularly beneficial to specific populations that can be hard to vaccinate," said County Commissioner Iliana Holguin, "Like farmworkers, folks who are detained, folks out in the very rural parts."
Holguin and other county officials have hosted first-come-first-served Johnson & Johnson vaccine clinics in rural areas. The director of El Paso's Office of Emergency Management addressed the clinics at Monday's County Comissioners Court meeting.
"We may have to pivot on some of our rural programs that have been using Johnson & Johnson primarily and we can focus on using Pfizer and Moderna for those," Jorge Rodriguez said.
While there is no timeline for the fix at the Johnson & Johnson facility, Holguin said the county has been told El Paso will receive additional doses of the Moderna vaccine.
"The good thing is that we’re still going to be receiving the other vaccines," Holguin said. "I think the important point to make is that if someone has the opportunity to get vaccinated, regardless of which vaccine it is, they should take it."
