Cape and Islands State Senator Julian Cyr.
HYANNIS – The Cape Cod Response Task Force said that the recently-approved Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine will have a big impact on the efforts to quickly and efficiently inoculate individuals across the region.
“We now have a third and crucial tool in our vaccination toolkit with the FDA emergency authorization of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine,” said Cape and Islands State Senator and member of the task force Julian Cyr.
“It is a one-shot regimen, which when available in ample supply, will greatly streamline the logistical demand at vaccination sites and allow us to administer vaccine faster and to more people.”
The J&J vaccine can be stored at warmer refrigerator temperatures for a longer period of time than either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, which Cyr said will make it easier to transport and use at community and mobile vaccination sites across the Cape and Islands.
Outer Cape Health Services Chief Medical Office Dr. Andrew Jorgensen said that the vaccine is safe and effective, and was studied on a diverse population.
It was measured as 85.4 percent protective against severe disease 28 days after administered, with no deaths reported in anyone who has received the J&J shot.
Jorgensen said that 44,000 people were involved in the study across the United States, South Africa and several countries in South America.
He also said that 19 percent of those enrolled in the J&J vaccine study were Black or African-American.
“This vaccine promises to be very helpful in vaccinating hard-to-reach individuals such as those living in rural communities, such as ours. We also expect many benefits for other hard-to-reach populations such as the homeless community,” he said.
As for side effects, about 50% of recipients reported pain at the injection site, similar to the other vaccines.
Cyr said that the vaccination efforts initiated by the Cape Cod Regional Vaccine Consortium have been successful, with the new vaccination site with significant capacity potential at the Cape Cod Community College up and running.
The site is offered by Cape Cod Healthcare with the support of Barnstable County, the Town of Barnstable and the college.
Cyr said that pending supply, more than 750 vaccinations per day, five days a week can be administered at the site.
“We have the ability to do some extra capacity there at that location and we’ll be experimenting just to see how many folks we can run through the site,” said County Department of Health and Environment Director Sean O’Brien.
“We’re ecstatic about the potentials with Johnson & Johnson.”
The county will also continue regional vaccination clinics across the Cape.
Pharmacies such as CVS are also vaccinating eligible residents when supply is available.
Those who are homebound and those without access to technology are being assisted by local councils on aging, municipalities, elder services, and local police departments in making vaccination appointments and receiving their first dose.
Residents are asked not to contact towns and ask to be put on any vaccination list, as towns are only reaching out to the most vulnerable senior individuals within their community that the municipality has already identified.
Those getting their second dose are asked by the task force to return to the same location that they received their first dose in order to keep the distribution process as efficient as possible.
Vaira Harik, Deputy Director of the County Department of Human Services, said that although numbers of new daily cases and hospitalizations are down, and that vaccination rates are increasing, residents cannot let up efforts in masking, socially distancing and otherwise following public safety protocols.
About Grady Culhane
