Camden County To Get 6K Doses Of Johnson & Johnson COVID Vaccine

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Camden County’s COVID-19 vaccination site in Gloucester Township will receive 6,000 doses of the recently approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine this week, county officials announced Thursday morning.

The Camden County Board of Commissioners said it will immediately begin contacting those who have appointments in the late spring, summer, and fall to move their appointments up.

On Wednesday, county officials said they expect this to drastically increase the amount of residents who can get vaccinated. Read more here: Camden County Expects Far More Vaccinations After New Vaccine

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“This is a significant development that dramatically improves and enhances our vaccination toolkit, adding a third vaccine option and offering protection to residents without requiring a second, follow-up visit,” Camden County Commissioner Director Louis Cappelli Jr. said. “This vaccine has been proven in clinical trials to dramatically reduce the likelihood of moderate or severe illness caused by the virus. Getting this additional protection into our community will rapidly advance our vaccination rollout and get us closer to herd immunity.”

The vaccination site in the Papiano Gym at Camden County College in the Blackwood section of Gloucester Township is one of several outlets that will get the new vaccine as the Camden County Department of Health puts together a plan to reach anyone who is unable to travel to the county site.

“We also want to get this vaccine into the arms of home bound residents, hard to reach residents and individuals in vulnerable populations,” Cappelli said. “We will be working closely with local officials, the Rutgers School of Nursing and our healthcare partners to reach these folks.”

A global study has found that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was effective in preventing moderate and severe disease, but 85 percent effective in preventing hospitalization and death from the coronavirus.

Unlike the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines already available, the new vaccine does not require a second dose in order to offer full protection. It is also easier to store and maintain than its counterparts and requires no observation period after vaccination.

“The availability of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine provides a third weapon in the battle against COVID-19. Our goal is to use these 6,000 J&J single-dose vaccines to vaccinate as many seniors, members of vulnerable populations, daycare workers and teachers, as possible, in accordance with state criteria,” Jefferson Health New Jersey President and CEO Brian Sweeney said. “If you have the opportunity to receive this single-dose vaccine, I encourage you to do so. According to Infectious Diseases experts, ‘the best vaccine is the one you can get the soonest.’”

On Thursday, Camden County reported 82 new cases of the coronavirus, bringing the number of coronavirus cases in Camden County to 39,764, with 1,068 deaths since the pandemic began.

“With vaccinations underway, we are turning a corner in the fight against this pandemic, but there is still a tremendous amount of uncertainty regarding what’s ahead," Cappelli said. "This disease still has the ability to spread and cause serious illness or death. Now is not the time to let our guards down. Please keep wearing a mask and social distancing until it is safe to ease these measures.”

Camden County's four-lane vaccination site is open Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is supported by volunteers from Cooper University Health Care, Jefferson Health — New Jersey, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, and Rutgers College of Nursing. To register for a vaccination, visit www.CamdenCountyVaccine.com.

Vaccine information

• Presently, the state's sites are vaccinating people in the 1A and 1B groups, including certain essential workers, seniors over 65, and people 16-65 with chronic medical conditions. Find out who qualifies by clicking this link. Teachers and some other essential workers will become eligible mid-month.
• Some in New Jersey have been helped to find vaccine appointments via social media groups, like New Jersey COVID-19 Vaccine Info on Facebook, which has 67,000 members.
• The state is expected to get 70,000 doses this week of the new Johnson and Johnson vaccine. Read more here.
• The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines use messenger RNA (mRNA), a new type of vaccine that doesn't include the weakened virus, but teaches human cells to make a protein that triggers the immune response (read more about that here). Johnson & Johnson's vaccine is more traditional.