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Denmark to receive almost half a million fewer Johnson & Johnson vaccines in April

Denmark will receive 450,000 fewer doses next month of the Covid-19 vaccine from Johnson & Johnson than promised.

Published: 25 March 2021 16:10 CET
Denmark to receive almost half a million fewer Johnson & Johnson vaccines in April
Photo: Piroschka Van De Wouw/Reuters/Ritzau Scanpix

The reduction in deliveries from the American company’s European subsidiary, Janssen, is accounted for in the latest update to Denmark’s vaccination calendar and is confirmed in a written update from the Danish Health Authority.

A total of 19,500 doses will comprise the first delivery to Denmark from Johnson & Johnson in the second half of April. A further 19,500 doses will arrive the following week.

As such, April will see just 39,000 doses of the vaccine arrive in Denmark, instead of the previously expected 495,000.

The Johnson & Johnson vaccine was the fourth to be approved for use in the EU and, unlike other types, only requires a single dose.

It is also the vaccine for which the EU has agreed to purchase the largest number of doses. Via the EU procurement system, Denmark has agreements in place to be able to vaccinate eight million people with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Following the reduction in expected deliveries, Denmark’s vaccination calendar has been adjusted to show an expected completion by the week commencing July 26th.

Janssen told broadcaster DR in a written comment that the company had not committed to supplying Denmark with vaccines from the beginning of April, as the country’s vaccination calendar previously stated.

“In accordance with our agreement with the European Commission, Johnson & Johnson remains obliged to deliver 200 million doses of Janssen’s Covid-19 vaccine in 2021 beginning from the second half of April,” the company said according to DR’s report.

READ ALSO: What does Denmark’s continued AstraZeneca pause mean for Covid-19 vaccination programme?

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COVID-19

Public Health Agency recommends two Covid doses next year for elderly

Sweden's Public Health Agency is recommending that those above the age of 80 should receive two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine a year, once in the spring and once in the autumn, as it shifts towards a longer-term strategy for the virus.

Published: 23 December 2022 10:53 CET
Public Health Agency recommends two Covid doses next year for elderly

In a new recommendation, the agency said that those living in elderly care centres, and those above the age of 80 should from March 1st receive two vaccinations a year, with a six month gap between doses. 

“Elderly people develop a somewhat worse immune defence after vaccination and immunity wanes faster than among young and healthy people,” the agency said. “That means that elderly people have a greater need of booster doses than younger ones. The Swedish Public Health Agency considers, based on the current knowledge, that it will be important even going into the future to have booster doses for the elderly and people in risk groups.” 

READ ALSO: 

People between the ages of 65 and 79 years old and young people with risk factors, such as obesity, diabetes, poor kidney function or high blood pressure, are recommended to take one additional dose per year.

The new vaccination recommendation, which will start to apply from March 1st next year, is only for 2023, Johanna Rubin, the investigator in the agency’s vaccination programme unit, explained. 

She said too much was still unclear about how long protection from vaccination lasted to institute a permanent programme.

“This recommendation applies to 2023. There is not really an abundance of data on how long protection lasts after a booster dose, of course, but this is what we can say for now,” she told the TT newswire. 

It was likely, however, that elderly people would end up being given an annual dose to protect them from any new variants, as has long been the case with influenza.

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