Why Some People Still Prefer the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine

• After last month’s pause of the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine, polls show some increased hesitancy about getting the inoculation.
• However, experts say the J&J vaccine is appealing to a segment of the population because it requires only one shot.
• They add that some people in rural areas with limited time off work and fewer healthcare options also favor the J&J vaccine.

The COVID-19 vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson and Janssen Pharmaceuticals has been administered to far fewer people than those produced by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.

But despite concerns about the blood clotting side effect that has occurred in a small number of people, the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine has its fans — particularly because it requires only a single dose, unlike the two-shot Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.

So far, about 54 million people in the United States have received both doses of the Pfizer vaccine, and about 44 million have received the Moderna shot, according to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

By contrast, fewer than 9 million Americans have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Part of the reason was that the J&J vaccine was the last to receive approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

It was authorized for emergency use on Feb. 27, 2021, whereas the Moderna vaccine was approved for emergency use on Dec. 18, 2020. Pfizer’s vaccine was approved on Dec. 11, 2020.

Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine also suffered a setback in April 2021 when the CDC put a 1-week hold on the vaccine after a few recipients developed a rare form of blood clot.

After conducting further testing on the J&J vaccine, the CDC reauthorized it for use.

In a Washington Post/ABC News poll released April 26 — and conducted while the pause was in effect — 22 percent of Americans said they would be willing to get the J&J vaccine, with less than half believing that the shot was safe or very safe.

In a CNBC poll, the percentage of people who said the J&J vaccine would be their top choice fell from 29 percent before the pause to 17 percent after the vaccine was reinstated.