Long Beach, CA – The City of Long Beach received its first shipment of Janssen COVID-19 vaccine last week, which enables the City to provide even more life-saving shots to people who live and/or work in Long Beach.
“We’re thrilled to be receiving the J&J vaccine,” said Mayor Robert Garcia. “This will allow us to further strengthen our vaccine outreach and provide the opportunity to people seeking to be vaccinated with a single dose.”
The first allocation of this new vaccine to the City, which was developed by Janssen, a pharmaceutical company owned by Johnson & Johnson, contained 4,100 doses.
The Janssen vaccine, approved for use for people aged 18 years and older, is proven to be highly protective against severe COVID-19 illness and death. Because this vaccine only needs a single dose and is less temperature-sensitive than those offered by Pfizer and Moderna, it will be an important tool for vaccinating across the City’s communities, including at the mass vaccine clinics at the Convention Center as well as in the City’s mobile vaccination program. The exact schedule for vaccinating using Janssen will depend on vaccine availability.
“This vaccine is safe and highly effective,” said Long Beach City Health Officer Dr. Anissa Davis. “I encourage everyone to take this vaccine if offered; it’s a quick one-dose option that will prevent severe illness and death. The best vaccination to take is the one you have access to.”
The City has been working diligently to administer as many vaccines as possible. In January, the City launched a mass vaccination clinic at the Long Beach Convention Center to distribute vaccines and in February, the City of Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services began conducting vaccine clinics as part of an outreach program that vaccinates people in neighborhoods most impacted by COVID-19 via small, community-based clinics.
The City reminds residents to continue practicing all health and safety protocols, including wearing a face covering and maintaining proper physical distance from others, even if they have received COVID-19 vaccinations.
To date, there have been 51,584 COVID-19 cases in Long Beach and 869 people have died from the virus. More than 139,000 vaccines have been administered, which includes more than 93,000 first doses and more than 46,000 second doses.For the latest information on COVID-19, with details on all that the City of Long Beach is doing to keep our residents safe, visit longbeach.gov/COVID19 and follow @LongBeachCity on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
