Ukraine’s Ministry of Health has authorized the use of the Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) vaccine against COVID-19 on July 2.
The vaccine isn’t used for mass vaccination in Ukraine.
The ministry’s formal decision came after a private company in Ukraine received 500 doses of Johnson & Johnson to vaccinate its employees in late May. Since the company sends workers for fishing in Alaska, its staff had to be vaccinated by a vaccine authorized by the United States. Aside from Johnson & Johnson, the U.S. uses Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
Developed by Belgian Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Johnson & Johnson is authorized in many countries including the United Kingdom and the European Union members.
The vaccine requires one dose for complete immunization. Clinical studies have shown that it is 66.3% effective against COVID-19 with those who have not been infected before. Johnson & Johnson has to be stored in temperatures of 2-8 degrees Celsius.
Since Ukraine rolled out its vaccination campaign in late February, it has been using the AstraZeneca, Sinovac and Pfizer vaccines. More than 2 million Ukrainians received their first shot.
