US health panel recommends resumption of J&J vaccine

WASHINGTON

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory panel recommended on Friday lifting a temporary pause put in place by health authorities on the use of Johnson and Johnson's coronavirus vaccine.

The jab was put on hold April 16 after exceedingly rare, but potentially fatal blood clots, began to emerge in patients who had received the vaccine.

In all, 15 women were reportedly diagnosed with the rare blood clots out of 8 million who received the US's sole single-dose shot.

The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted to recommend the resumption of the vaccine, saying its health benefits outweighed any potential risk, according to multiple reports.

The advice is not final, but US regulators are set to quickly evaluate it when considering further action on the vaccine.

The US is also rolling out vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech, but both of those shots require two separate doses spaced weeks apart.