SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WGGB/WSHM) – If you got the Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a message for you.
They now recommend people who got the Johnson and Johnson shot should get a Pfizer or Moderna booster.
Western Mass News checked in with one local pharmacy to see if customers are following suit with the new guidance.
“When they looked at people who had one J&J vaccine or two J&J vaccines, or one J&J with one MRNA vaccine, the patients who had the one J&J and the one MRNA together, were more protected,” said Dr. Joanne Levine, Medical Director of Infection Prevention at Cooley Dickinson.
The CDC also suggested that if you got the J&J vaccine for both your first shot and your booster, you should go get a second booster dose of either Pfizer or Moderna.
If you are getting a vaccine for the first time, Dr. Levine said the guidance has changed.
“Johnson and Johnson vaccine is no longer recommended as a primary vaccination because there is the concern of the very rare effect of blood clotting,” Dr. Levine explained. “It is a very rare complication, but because the MRNA vaccines are not associated with blood clots, they are the preferred vaccine at this time.”
At Springfield Pharmacy, they have all three COVID-19 vaccines, but they said customers have actually called, requesting the Johnson and Johnson.
Pharmacist Alex Wu said he informs all customers of the CDC’s recommendation to get either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
“In the end, I do tell the individual that it is their choice, and I would rather have the individual get vaccinated than not get vaccinated,” Wu told us.
He said customers find the one-shot vaccine to be appealing if they have to travel, or get vaccinated by a certain date.
“In those types of situations, I would see that it would be beneficial for the person to get the one dose so that they can go travel instead of having to wait the 21 days or 28 days,” Wu said.
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