The New York Times reports that the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccines are sitting in states, with 200,000 in Ohio expiring on June 23, and as many as 60,000 in Arkansas in jeopardy. However, there are over 10 million J&J doses sitting in the states unused. In mid-April, when the FDA overreacted with their 10-day hold on J&J vaccines, about 20 million doses had been delivered to the states and between 7-8 million doses applied. Since then, states have largely ceased ordering J&J doses; and the 12-13 million supply has only shrunk to about 10 million. Worse, almost 80 million more doses have been produced, but await, since mid-May, packaging into the syringes.
There are 24 countries that have already approved of J&J vaccines. Despite J&J being an ideal vaccine for countries with logistical challenges (the vaccine can be stored at refrigerator temperatures, and is a single-dose vaccine), not one dose of Biden’s much-touted “80 million doses” has left U.S. shores. And federal regulations are being enforced that prevent states from sending the vaccines back to the federal government or to anyone else, including other states.
