California’s pause in the use of Johnson & Johnson coronavirus shots will decrease Kaiser Permanente’s vaccine supply and the number of appointments the health giant can offer, the company told patients late Tuesday.
The Oakland-based health system says they’ll be able to administer shots at 69% of their capacity in California. That means roughly 500,000 doses each week, compared to the 720,000 doses the company could administer if supplies allowed.
The reduction comes as Kaiser is set to expand vaccine eligibility to people 16 and older on Thursday.
In an email to patients, Kaiser leaders wrote that not everyone will be able to make vaccine appointments immediately and that appointments will be limited through April. Kaiser leadership said they will only cancel existing appointments if no other COVID-19 vaccine is available.
The constraints come not only from the Johnson & Johnson pause following reports of the extremely rare but serious blood clots experienced by six women who received the shot, but also, the company says, due to other vaccine supply limitations that have reduced the number of doses coming to the state from the federal government.