Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Omicron Deaths Higher For Those Who Got J&J Than Other Vaccines: CDC Data
Recently published figures ... suggest that COVID-19 deaths among Johnson & Johnson recipients may have peaked at more than double the rate of other vaccinated Americans during the Omicron variant wave. For the week of January 8, COVID-associated deaths among Americans who were vaccinated with Johnson & Johnson reached a rate of more than 5 out of every 100,000, according to the CDC's figures. That's higher than the rate among recipients of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, which was around 2 deaths per 100,000 people. (Tin, 3/25)
The COVID-related death rate among Americans who received Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine was more than double that of people who received other vaccines, new data from the Omicron surge show. For the week of Jan. 8, as cases of the highly contagious variant surged, the rate of COVID-related deaths among people who had the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) shot was more than five in 100,000, according to figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That compared with about two deaths per 100,000 among those who received the Pfizer or Moderna mRNA vaccines, CBS News reported. (3/26)
In other vaccine research —
Two studies published yesterday in JAMA, one from Sweden and Norway and one from Ontario, find no link between COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy and adverse outcomes. (Van Beusekom, 3/25)
And in updates on vaccine mandates —
A divided U.S. Supreme Court said the Navy can limit deployment and training for 35 Seals and other special operations forces who are refusing on religious grounds to get vaccinated against Covid-19. Granting a Biden administration request over three dissents, the justices partly blocked a federal judge’s order that required the Navy to assign and deploy the sailors without regard to their unvaccinated status. The order will apply while litigation over the Navy’s vaccine mandate goes forward. (Stohr, 3/25)
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Thursday that his administration would not rehire unvaccinated city workers. Around 1,400 city employees were fired earlier this year for failing to comply with the city's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Adams said, during a news conference at Citi Field, he did not plan to rehire them. "Not at this time," he said, according to The Wall Street Journal, "We are not reviewing if we are going to bring [them] back. (Musto, 3/25)
