Governor Ned Lamont on the J&J vaccine: "It's safer than driving to your appointment."

[George II]

[50 Shades Of Blue]

1. If I were signed up for the J&J vaccine, I'd be canceling my appointment and trying for Pfizer

or Moderna.

I've had blood clots. I would not take any vaccination whose takers developed them until it was cleared of being a cause.

[JohnSJ]

2. The problem is they need to understand what is causing the cerebral venuous sinus thrombosis,

and if it has something to do with the vaccine or not. Is the vaccine somehow interfering with platelet factor 4 antibodies?

While it appears to be a rare manifestation, and they are in the process of determining if this is due to the vaccine or something apart from the vaccine, it is prudent to put the vaccine distribution on pause

If it is due to the vaccine, they also need to identify those who are vulnerable to this cvst, and what treatment can be administered to neutralize the ill effects

Currently what they have observed is that it seems to be occurring in people 45 or under, but information is needed before even making that conclusion

[George II]

3. Statistically, with only six cases out of about 7 million doses, it's impossible at this point....

....to draw any conclusions.

Are all 6 out of 7 million connected to the vaccine? How many other single serious side effects have occurred in vaccine recipients like heart attacks? If more than 7, did the vaccine cause the heart attack?

Not to sound facetious, but as Governor Lamont hints, how many of those 7 million were involved in car accidents on their way to get their vaccine?

Looking at one other statistic - every day 90 Americans are killed in car accidents. If only 25% of the population drive each day, that's almost exactly the same % as those who have had blood clots who took the vaccine (.00011% vs. .0001%)!

[JohnSJ]

5. They are trying to determine in through in vitro means verses in vivo

JNJ themselves, along with the FDA put a pause on it, so at this time it isn't something if someone wants get it or not, they can't

[janterry]

9. The MD who asked a question at the end of the advisory mtg

was spot on (I thought). It's a statistically insignificant reaction given the overall population that has taken the shot. But if we narrow the bands down to which person/with what condition is most at risk - we might find a more consequential % (not the one in a million).

Personally - I had psyched myself up to get it (I was scheduled for today).

[JohnSJ]

10. As long as it is an informed decision. However, based on the circumstances , I think if you want

to be vaccinated in the next couple of weeks, it will most likely be Pfizer/BionTech or Moderna

[janterry]

12. I might switch to the MRNA

I'm not sure, yet. This has thrown me for a bit of a loop.

I'm going to wait a few days for the dust to settle and make a new vaccination plan.

[EarlG]

4. I had an appointment to get a J&J shot today

The first place canceled, so I scrambled to find a new appointment elsewhere. Another clinic much further away had a slot, so I took it. Called them up and they said it was also J&J. I said, "Oh, you're still giving those?" and the pharmacist was like, yeah, we think it's fine. So I said well... okay then, I'll come over.

I drove about 30 minutes to get there, listening to the radio the whole way. They were doing special reports on local news radio about J&J, and as I was getting close they said the state was now recommending all providers stop giving the shots. I could still have gotten one, but about five minutes away from the clinic I chickened out and canceled.

I probably should have just gotten it -- I know the risk is *incredibly* low, and Ned Lamont is likely correct that getting the J&J shot is safer than driving to the appointment. I think it was the fact that they said one of the indicators for a potential clot was shortness of breath, and I already have mild asthma, so shortness of breath is a pretty regular occurrence for me, and I didn't want to spend the next three weeks panicking every time I have to use my inhaler.

Anyway... I managed to get another appointment for tomorrow for a two-shot vax (not sure if it's Moderna or Pfizer yet). It's even further away this time, but probably worth it for peace of mind. I still feel like a bit of a jerk for canceling the J&J shot, mind you, but I don't feel so bad after I was able to get another appointment so quickly.

[50 Shades Of Blue]

6. I'm glad you were able to schedule a different vaccination so quickly!

[EarlG]

7. Me too

When I got home I sat there banging on all the local clinic/pharmacy websites until an appointment slot popped up. Quite a relief, because I was really bummed about not getting the shot today.

If anyone is in the process of doing this by the way, I've found this site to be most useful:

https://www.goodrx.com/covid-19/vaccine#find-an-appointment

[JohnSJ]

11. +++

[sarcasmo]

8. I'm in the same boat, my J&J is scheduled for Friday and Walmart has Not canceled.

[EarlG]

14. Well this is one of the reasons I was wary about canceling

I'd managed to grab this appointment, and I was worried that if I canceled I wouldn't be able to get another one. And I had a sneaking feeling that the J&J "pause" would be over in 48-72 hours, they'd say "It's fine, everyone get your shots," and I would have passed up on my chance. That's why I was a bit frantic to get a new appointment after I decided to cancel the one I had today.

If I were you I'd hang on to the Walmart appointment until Friday and see what the situation is then. Plus there's probably no harm in trying to make an alternative appointment elsewhere if you want -- you can always cancel it if the Friday one pans out.

[sarcasmo]

15. Walmart canceled my late Friday appointment a couple hours after my post.

[Sympthsical]

13. I think this is an "information pause"

There's a term for this pharmacists use. I could ask my partner who's a regional pharmacy manager and fifteen feet away, but he seems busy on the phone.

Basically, sometimes the medical community will pause for a moment, because they want important information to seep down from the top into the tiniest branches of the system. There is a tiny problem here - six in seven million. But to be on the safe side, they're taking a short break to make sure as many medical practitioners are advised as possible. They want to make sure the information penetrates as much as possible.

So, with Pfizer, we all hung out 15-30 mins after the shot, because they're looking for an allergic reaction. Similarly with J&J, they want patients and providers to keep an eye out for this.

Vaccinations will resume very soon, I imagine. They just want a pause to let the situation soak in through the vaccine supplying community of practitioners.