European Union Gives Permit To Use Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 Vaccine

Vaksin Johnson & Johnson. (Wikimedia Commons/New York National Guard/Flickr)

JAKARTA - The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has issued a conditional marketing permit for the single-dose COVID-19 vaccine produced by Johnson & Johnson.

This permit was granted, after the producers explained about their production vaccines, along with the possibility of the fastest delivery after mid-April.

"After a thorough evaluation, the EMA human treatment committee concluded with the consensus that the data on the vaccine was robust and met the criteria for efficacy, safety, and quality", EMA Director Emer Cooke said in a statement.

"With this latest positive opinion, authorities across the European Union will have other options to fight the pandemic and protect the lives and health of their citizens", Cooke added.

A few hours later, EMA issued a license to use the Johnson & Johnson's vaccine, following the three previous vaccines that had received recommendations for use, namely Pfizer BioNTech, AstraZeneca Oxford, and Moderna.

Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine consists of a virus modified to contain a gene to make the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that is injected, triggering the immune system to produce antibodies to fight it.

Clinical trials involving more than 44.000 people in the United States, South Africa, and Latin American countries, found this vaccine has an efficacy rate of up to 67 percent.

Side effects are usually mild or moderate and will go away within a few days of vaccination. The most common were pain at the injection site, headache, fatigue, muscle aches, and nausea", EMA explained in the statement.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the latest EMA announcement, via writing on her Twitter account.

"Safer and more effective vaccines are starting to hit the market", she wrote.

But, despite this month's approval, the first dose is unlikely to be rolled out across the block until next month at the earliest.

"This is a good vaccine and it might get protection with just one shot. But the problem is, Johnson & Johnson definitely won't deliver as soon as Pfizer BioNTech did in December", German MP Dr. Peter Liese told Euronews.

"They talk about mid-April and that's uncertain, I hope they will succeed. But they make no guarantee that the promised delivery of 50 million doses in the second quarter will definitely be there. First of all, they have to be faster. And second, they have to give a dose of 50 million as promised", he added.

More safe and effective vaccines are coming to the market. We have just authorized the use of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine in the EU, following @EMA_News' positive review. With the number of doses we ordered, we could vaccinate up to 200 million people in the EU. pic.twitter.com/YsrcfF9ZE8

- Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) March 11, 2021