Cdc director dr. Walensky says any vaccine is better than none in recommending j&j's covid shots

Rochelle Walensky, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, looks on prior to a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing on Capitol hill in

Washington, D.C., July 20, 2021. Stefani Reynolds | Pool | Reuters CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said Friday she is standing by an advisory committee's decision to keep Johnson

& Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine on the market despite a rare, but serious, side effect that has caused blood clots in some people. "Given the current state of the pandemic, both

here and around the world, any vaccination is better than no vaccination," Walensky said during a press briefing by the White House Covid-19 response team. "Individuals who are

unable or unwilling to receive an mRNA vaccine will continue to have access to Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccines." The agency's Advisory Committee on Vaccine Practices

on Thursday unanimously recommended Pfizer and BioNTech's or Moderna's Covid-19 vaccines, which use mRNA technology that hasn't been linked to the blood clots, over

J&J's, which uses a more traditional virus-based technology. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed 54 cases of mostly younger women who developed blood clots with

low blood platelet levels — a new condition called thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, or TTS — after receiving J&J's shots. Of those cases, 36 required treatment in

intensive care. The panel's presentation of the data showed the greatest rick of TTS is among females 30 to 49 years of age. The committee voted unanimously on a preferential

recommendation making the J&J vaccine available to those who are unable or unwilling to receive the other two vaccines. MORE CNBC HEALTH COVERAGE * From ‘Cockroach Award’ to the Big

Board: Hinge Health’s unlikely path to IPO * How UnitedHealthcare became the face of America’s health insurance frustrations * When 20,000 devices were paralyzed by a bad update, a Georgia

health system turned to Apple