The first 300,000 Janssen vaccines arriving in Spain this week are for people aged 70 to 79 years. After this first shipment, Spain will receive 5.5 million Janssen vaccines until June. This vaccine only requires a single dose.
Minister of Health Darias announced the Janssen rollout on Monday (12th April). The choice to first vaccinate the seventy-year-olds with the Janssen vaccine stems from the policy of giving priority to vulnerable groups, including the elderly. The doses arriving up to June are intended for all people aged 60 to 69 years. It is expected that all vulnerable groups in Spain will be vaccinated against the corona virus before the end of May.
The Janssen vaccine, from the Belgian pharmaceutical company Janssen Pharmaceutica (part of the American multinational Johnson & Johnson), offers a number of important advantages. Not only is a single dose sufficient, but storage and distribution are also subject to less strict conditions. For example, the vaccine can be stored at a normal refrigerator temperature of between 2 and 8 degrees.
90% of over-80s had first injection
This week, Spain also received 1.2 million doses of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine. These are largely intended to complete the vaccination campaign for all over-80s. Now 90% of all over-80s in Spain have received at least the first shot. The Pfizer vaccines are used in conjunction with the Moderna and Janssen vaccines for people in their seventies.
With regard to a second jab with the AstraZeneca vaccine for people under the age of 60, the minister has indicated that the policy in this regard will depend on the results of scientific findings. According to the minister, there is enough time to make a well-considered decision.
Almost four times more vaccines in the second quarter
If all suppliers keep their promises, a total of 38 million doses of vaccine will arrive in the second quarter. That is almost four times the 10 million received in the first quarter. The largest shipment of vaccines comes from Pfizer, with 4.8 million doses expected this month.
Group immunity in September
Because the injection rate can be accelerated with the arrival of new batches of vaccines, the minister expects to achieve the target of vaccinating 70% of the population by September.
