DETROIT – Johnson & Johnson announced new research that found a second dose of its COVID vaccine offers a major boost in protection.
The company is also sharing new information about how the Johnson and Johnson vaccine is performing in the real world. It shared the results of three studies. The first study provided reassurance about effectiveness.
Johnson & Johnson said its vaccine was 79% effective at preventing COVID-19 infections and 81% effective at preventing hospitalizations. That includes states where the delta variant was spreading.
The second study showed people given a booster shot six months or longer after their first dose had a 12-fold increase in antibodies compared to a four-fold increase for people who got a second dose at two months. So protection should be stronger if people get boosters later.
The company said a real-world evidence study of 290,000 people in the United States using health insurance records through July, so covering the delta variant showed the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was 81% effective at preventing hospitalizations.
The company said a two-dose version of the vaccine provides 94% protection against symptomatic infection. That would make a two-dose regimen of the vaccine comparable to the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines.
The full data has not been released, only a press release has. The data also has not been peer-reviewed.
Read: Complete Michigan COVID coverage