The Public Health Commission has approved this Tuesday a new update of the Vaccination Strategy which is being followed in Spain, which has included the extension of the age of use of the AstraZeneca vaccine from 55 to 65 years. However, the most novel change, because that was already known, is the population group that will receive the Janssen vaccine when it becomes available.
According to the document, this vaccine, the fourth approved by the European Medicines Agency and whose first doses will arrive in Spain in the second half of April, “It can be used in parallel with mRNA vaccines to increase the rate of vaccination in older age groups.”
So, people over 70 will receive the Janssen vaccine, as is the case with Pfizer and Moderna. The idea is that it can be used in parallel for older age groups and thus complement vaccination.
Vaccine characteristics: single dose
The peculiarity of this vaccine is that It is administered in a single dose, which will greatly increase the rate of vaccination because you do not have to wait for a second round or use a double dose to complete the immunization.
Janssen’s vaccine is composed of an adenovirus modified to include the SARS-CoV-2 protein S. This substance is what the virus uses to enter the body and transmit the infection to the rest of the cells, so Its previous introduction into the body will allow the immune system to create antibodies against the disease.
The Johnson & Johnson company announced last February that clinical trials of the vaccine demonstrated an effectiveness of the doses of 66% to prevent the coronavirus from moderate to severe after 28 days of its application. However, this effectiveness rises up to 85% if we talk about hospitalizations and deaths related to SARS-CoV-2.
How many will arrive and when?
The Minister of Health, Carolina Darias, advanced last week that a first shipment of 300,000 doses for the second half of April and this same Monday indicated that it could begin to arrive on April 15. As he said, vaccination is expected to experience “an important leap” with the arrival of this vaccine.
In addition to that first package, 1.3 million doses will arrive in May and another 3.9 million in June, for a total of 5.5 million only in the second quarter of the year.
In addition, it could even affect the rest of the sanitary measures. The Minister of Tourism, Reyes Maroto, has also stated that by that date trips could be reopened and “restrictions reduced.” “We are going to have a stopover in the vaccination that will also allow us to prepare the reopening of the trips safely,” he declared.