ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Days after the FDA granted emergency use authorization for the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, Governor Larry Hogan held a brief update on Maryland's progress in vaccinating residents.
Hogan opened the update by introducing Dr. Robert Redfield as a new senior adviser for public health.
Redfield formerly served as the CDC Director in the Trump administration.
Johnson and Johnson is the third company to develop a COVID-19 vaccine under former President Trump's Operation Warp Speed
Maryland is expected to receive an initial 49,600 doses of the new vaccine, all of which is expected to be deployed this week.
Unfortunately that will be the only shipment for the next 18 days, according to Hogan, despite the vaccine being manufactured at Emergent BioSolutions in East Baltimore.
It was announced Tuesday that Merck would be joining in the effort to speed up the process of getting the vaccine out to states.
In the meantime, the mass vaccination site at M&T Bank Stadium is planning to increase its supply to 2,000 shots per day.
As previously reported by WMAR-2 News, the Convention Center will focus on prioritizing city residents in certain zip codes.
The newest mass vaccination site at Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf is scheduled to open Thursday.
On March 18, the Wicomico Civic Center in Salisbury will follow, with a sixth site in Hagerstown opening soon after.
As of Tuesday -- 1,576,430 have received at least one vaccine dose.
A breakdown shows 14.531percent of the state population receiving their first as opposed to just 8.01 percent who've gotten a second.
Federal health officials recommend getting the earliest available vaccine, regardless of brand.
Studies found the new Johnson and Johnson vaccine to be 66 percent effective in completely preventing COVID-19, while reducing 85 percent of severe cases with no deaths reported during trials.
The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines each prevent more than 90 percent of the virus.
Johnson & Johnson is only a single shot, as opposed to the others which require two doses.
It can also be refrigerated at normal temperature while the others cannot.
Here are two ways to schedule a vaccine appointment.
Completing an online form here or call 1-855-634-6829 from 7-days a week from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
