JOHNSTON, Iowa — One of Iowa’s top vaccine experts joined Gov. Kim Reynolds’ press conference Wednesday morning to reassure Iowans that COVID-19 vaccines are safe, effective and the best way to bring the pandemic to a close.
FAST FACTS
- Johnson & Johnson vaccine pause will not impact supply moving forward
- The Iowa Department of Public Health will be hosting virtual forums to answer Iowan's questions about vaccines
- Iowans should presume B.1.1.7 variant is dominant strain
- 21 counties denied allocations from an order placed on April 8. Details are below
This comes one day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended a "pause" in administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine after reports of blood clots in six women.
According to Reynolds, state officials scrambled to announce the pause in Iowa because they weren't notified of the pause beforehand.
"This was a surprising setback at a time when our vaccine efforts are showing much progress," she said. "And because states weren't informed in advance of the announcement we were left to develop contingency plans in the moment per vaccine clinic scheduled yesterday and throughout the week."
The governor noted the state was already planning for a "minimal supply" over the next few weeks due to the slowdown in manufacturing. The White House also informed governors Tuesday that the temporary pause should not impact supply going forward.
"While news of a serious reaction to the J&J vaccine is concerning it's important that we don't jump to conclusions prematurely before more details are known," Reynolds said. "Nearly 7 million doses of J&J vaccine have been administered in the United States. And at this time, we're aware of only six cases resulting in the rare blood clots."
Dr. Patricia Winokur is the executive dean of the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. She also led the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine trial at the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics and is currently part of the Novavax trial.
Winokur explained the reasoning for the vaccine pause.
"They did this because they had received reports of six cases of a rare blood clotting disorder, that's also associated with low platelet counts," she said. "This is a disease that many of us have not seen, and they are taking the appropriate caution to review these cases."
The CDC's Advisory Committee of Immunization Practices (ACIP) will be bringing in consultants to evaluate the rare disorder, according to Winokur. ACIP is also monitoring similar cases reported after the AstraZeneca vaccine in Europe.
The J&J and AstraZeneca vaccines are similar because they are both based on adenovirus platforms. Winokur said ACIP is reviewing if this base is the reason for the reported blood clots.
"I think the fact that we did pause is important. It's what we want the system to do," Winokur said. "Many of you probably are concerned that we rolled these vaccines out too quickly. I can assure you, we did not skip any steps in the creations of these vaccines."
Linn County Public Health is hosting a 24-hour vaccination clinic this weekend from 9 a.m. Saturday to 9 a.m. Sunday at the Alliant Energy Convention Center in Cedar Rapids (1001 Shaver Rd NE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52402). Appointments are required and can be scheduled by calling 319-892-6097 or visiting the county's website. Recipients will get a Pfizer first dose, with a second dose appointment coming at a May 8 follow-up clinic.
For more information on how and where to schedule a vaccine appointment, click here or text VACCINE to 515-457-1026.
Winokur noted each of the emergency-approved vaccines were tested on 30,000 to 40,000 people.
"That's tenfold higher than we typically include in our drug trials," she said. "Every drug that we create, has rare side effects. We don't see those side effects until we start distributing the vaccine or drug into the general public, and millions of people are dosed. That's what we're seeing here, a one in a million type of event."
Both Winokur and Reynolds urged Iowans to get vaccinated amid the J&J pause.
"We still have COVID-19 circulating in the United States," Winokur said. "We have variants that are being transmitted more quickly in the United States."
"I received the J&J vaccine myself six weeks ago. That's hard to believe it's been six weeks ago, but during the evening of my vaccination and the following day, I, like the doctor said, experienced some mild side effects that are common with any of the COVID-19 vaccines, including a dull headache and general fatigue," Reynolds said. "But I was still able to report to work the next day and within 24 hours, I was back to feeling 100%. So I'm glad that I did have the opportunity to have the J&J vaccine. I would do it again."
Iowa Department of Public Health Interim Director Kelly Garcia also noted Iowans should presume the B.1.1.7 variant is the dominant strain of COVID-19 in Iowa.
Garcia said this is most likely the reason more kids are contracting the virus, but that the state isn't seeing worse outcomes due to the variant. The variant does spread faster, emphasizing the need to be vaccinated as soon as possible, Garcia added.
As of Wednesday morning, 714,892 people have been fully vaccinated by the state of Iowa. Of those, 83,685 have received the J&J vaccine.
Iowa working on vaccine equity as rollout continues
State public health officials are shifting their focus from mass vaccination clinics to a more targeted strategy "with an equity lens," according to Garcia
"We've moved from it being a really scarce supply to, which required a ton of patience, and now we're moving into a space where we really do need to focus on talking with these Iowans who may be on the fence about taking the vaccines or who now have questions, which is completely normal," she said.
Garcia encouraged community leaders to partner with local public health departments to support these efforts.
"We're also putting together a toolkit to assist in these efforts at the local level, and to speak to Iowans who may be hesitant, the Department of Public Health, along with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and the University of Iowa, are collaborating to host information sessions about the COVID-19 vaccines," Garcia said.
The sessions will provide a virtual forum for Iowans to learn more about vaccines, including safety and efficacy. They'll also have the opportunity to ask questions with a team of medical experts.
A Spanish interpreter will also be at the sessions for Spanish-speaking Iowans.
"We want to ensure all Iowans have the information they need to feel safe and confident in their decision to be vaccinated. There is no fee or registration or registration is required. The sessions are open to all," Garcia said.
More information on the sessions will be found at www.iowacovidinfo.org.
21 counties declined allocations for the week of April 12
IDPH officials confirmed 21 counties in Iowa denied vaccine shipments that were ordered on April 8.
Spokeswoman Sarah Ekstrand said these counties are doing exactly what the state has asked them to.
"That is, when a county cannot ensure the ability to administer all of the allocated doses, we ask them to decline doses so those doses can be allocated to areas of the state with a high demand," Ekstrand said in an email. "These counties will continue to receive a weekly allocation with the option to decline doses or accept doses as the need within each county may fluctuate."
Those counties are:
- Adair
- Cass
- Clay
- Crawford
- Davis
- Decatur
- Floyd
- Franklin
- Hancock
- Humboldt
- Jackson
- Jefferson
- Keokuk
- Kossuth
- Lyon
- Osceola
- Sac
- Union
- Webster
- Winnebago
- Woodbury
Local 5 has followed up with Ekstrand to see if these counties denied all new doses or just asked for a smaller allocation.
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