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Johnson & Johnson says FDA has approved extended vaccine expiration date

10 June 2021
Dan Ackermann

Johnson & Johnson announced Thursday that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized an extension of its COVID vaccine's shelf life from three months to 4.5 months.

Why it matters: Amid a slowdown in vaccine uptake, a number of state health officials had been sounding the alarm that hundreds of thousands of single-shot J&J doses could expire this month.

  • Prior to the FDA's extension, J&J's vaccine could be stored at normal refrigeration temps for up to three months. Pfizer and Moderna's two-shot vaccines must be stored in colder temperatures, but can last for up to six months.
  • The extension is based on "data from ongoing stability assessment studies, which have demonstrated that the vaccine is stable at 4.5 months when refrigerated at temperatures of 36 – 46 degrees Fahrenheit (2 – 8 degrees Celsius)," J&J said in a statement.

The FDA did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.

What they're saying: "A single-shot vaccine that provides protection and prevents hospitalization and death is an important tool in the global fight against COVID-19," J&J said.

  • "Evidence from our Phase 3 ENSEMBLE study demonstrates the efficacy of our single-shot COVID-19 vaccine, including against viral variants that are highly prevalent. Regardless of race and ethnicity, age, geographic location and comorbidities, these results remain consistent."
  • Vaccine providers should check the J&J website to confirm the vaccine's latest expiration dates, the company added.

The big picture: The authorization comes as COVID vaccine demand declines in the U.S., though it continues to skyrocket abroad.

  • In the U.S., over 10.1 million J&J doses have been delivered but not administered, according to CDC data.
  • President Biden has said he will send 20 million doses of COVID vaccines, including Pfizer, Moderna and J&J, to other countries by the end of June.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.