Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ) – Request report the one-time vaccine against Covid-19 is said to be two months behind the original production schedule and won’t catch up until the end of April.
Citing people familiar with the matter, The New York Times reported that while Johnson & Johnson expects to release the results of its Covid-19 vaccine study within two weeks, production is likely due to delays due to production delays that have sent the vaccine out the door and into the poor from April.
The delays come as the US continues to experience record infections, hospitalizations and deaths from the new coronavirus, which has infected approximately 91.6 million people to date, resulting in more than 1.96 million deaths, said John Hopkins University.
More than 4,300 people died of the disease on Tuesday, while the nation’s total death toll exceeded 380,000.
Paul Stoffels, Johnson & Johnson’s Chief Scientific Officer, told the Times that if the data is positive and the Food and Drug Administration approves the emergency vaccine, Johnson & Johnson could contribute to the vaccination in the US sometime in March.
However, apparent delays in Johnson & Johnson’s manufacturing capabilities could still hinder efforts to roll out the vaccine and get it in arms. Federal officials have learned that the company is a whopping two months behind its original production schedule and won’t catch up until the end of April, when it is reported to have delivered more than 60 million doses.
If Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine can strongly protect people against Covid-19, as some outside scientists expect, it would offer great advantages over the two vaccines currently authorized in the US that require two doses and more complicated cold storage requirements.
Pfizer (PFE) – Request report and BioNTech (BNTX) – Request report as well as Moderna (MRNA) – Request report got an emergency permit last month to roll out their vaccines.
The US is lagging behind on the vaccination schedule. According to data from Centers for Disease Control, 27 million vaccines had been distributed on Tuesday, although only 9 million had been administered.
Shares of Johnson & Johnson were up 0.5% to $ 157.34 during trading on Wednesday.