J&J Vaccine ‘Paused’ After Adverse Reactions at Georgia Site

AP – Georgia health officials are temporarily stopping vaccinations of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at one site in north Georgia after eight people experienced “adverse reactions” on Wednesday.

At least three other states — North Carolina, Iowa and Colorado — have reported adverse reactions of people who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at some locations.

One of the eight people at the vaccination site in Cumming, Georgia, was evaluated at a hospital and released, the Georgia Department of Public Health said Friday. The others were monitored and sent home.

Georgia health officials have not said what the adverse reactions were. In North Carolina, health officials have said that multiple people fainted after receiving the vaccine.

The vaccine is being paused at the Georgia site “out an abundance of caution,” health officials said in a statement.

There’s no reason to believe there is anything wrong with the vaccine, and people who have received it should not be concerned, said Dr. Kathleen Toomey, Georgia’s health commissioner.

The agency is looking into what may have caused the reactions, “including the conditions at the fairgrounds such as heat and the ability to keep the site cool,” Toomey said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating the incidents in Georgia, Iowa, Colorado and North Carolina, health officials said.