CDC Advisers To Revisit Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendation

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is planning to review the benefit and risk assessment for Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine.

The single-dose vaccine is authorized by the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration for anybody over the age of 18. It has also been authorized as a booster shot for anybody over 18 who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, or ones made by Pfizer and Moderna.

According to CNN, before the advisers discuss the vaccine, they will be briefed on reports about thrombosis and thrombocytopenia syndrome, a rare condition that has been linked to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The condition, which causes blood clots, has also been linked to the Astrazeneca vaccine. That vaccine has not been authorized for use in the United States.

A source told CNN that the advisers may alter their recommendation and suggest that women under the age of 50 should avoid Johnson & Johnson's vaccine.

"I think a fair amount of the discussion will be about J&J -- do we need to use this one at all since we have so much of the others, or, if it's used, should it be focused on certain populations?" the person said.

"We could just take J&J off the table and do fine in this country," they added.

The committee will meet on Thursday (December 16) at 12 p.m. ET and have scheduled a vote at 2:30 p.m.