Johnson & Johnson vaccine use will remain paused in US amid evaluation

CDC advisers say they need more evidence to decide if cases of unusual blood clots were linked to the Covid vaccine

Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine will remain in limbo a while longer after US health advisers told the government Wednesday that they need more evidence to decide if a handful of unusual blood clots were linked to the shot - and if so, how big the potential risk really is.

The reports are exceedingly rare - six cases out of more than 7m US inoculations with the one-dose vaccine. But the government recommended a pause in Johnson & Johnson vaccinations this week, not long after European regulators declared that such clots are a rare but possible risk with the AstraZeneca vaccine, a shot made in a similar way but not yet approved for use in the US.