Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 shot holds its ground amid breakthrough cases
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More than a year after it was authorized in the U.S., the COVID-19 shot developed by Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) appears to prevent infections, hospitalizations, and deaths at least as well as the rival vaccines from Pfizer (PFE)/BioNTech (BNTX) and Moderna (MRNA).
The rates of COVID-19 cases in those who received the vector-based shot stood at ~18.8 per 100,000 as of March. 19, the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicate.
In comparison, the breakthrough infections among those who received Pfizer (PFE)/BioNTech (BNTX) and Moderna (MRNA) shots stood at ~31.6 and ~32.6 per 100,000, respectively.
The C.D.C. focused its study on those aged 5 years and older, and the data were collected from all regions across the country representing more than 60% of the population.
The same report shows that in March, the unvaccinated people were 2.4 times as likely to test positive for COVID-19 as those who received at least the initial vaccine regimen. In February, the risk of getting infected stood at 2.8 times for the unvaccinated.
Meanwhile, the cases among those who received the Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) vaccine only as the primary series stood at ~15.7 per 100,000 compared to ~23.4 and ~22.9 per 100,000 in those who received only the primary series of Pfizer (PFE)/BioNTech (BNTX) and Moderna (MRNA) shots, respectively.
Even among those who received booster shots, the Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) vaccine outperformed its rivals in cutting the infections, the data published on April 15 indicate.
In terms of preventing COVID-related mortality, J&J (JNJ) shot has performed on par with mRNA-based shots from rivals as of data on February 26.
In December, the CDC recommended mRNA vaccines over J&J (JNJ) vaccine for all adults, citing the risk of rare clotting events that had triggered a brief pause in the use of the single-dose shot in April 2021.