- The shelf life of a batch of the Johnson & Johnson vaccines has been extended.
- Only less than 50 000 doses of the batch were left by early this week.
- The doses can be used until the end of September.
The lifespan of a batch of Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccines which was expected to expire this week, has been extended.
The vaccines were supposed to expire on Wednesday but stability studies indicated that their shelf life could be extended until the end of September.
By Tuesday, health department spokesperson Popo Molefe said there were less than 50 000 doses of the batches left. The doses are expected to be used by the end of the week.
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In a circular, health department deputy-director general Dr Nicholas Crisp said the storage data was reviewed by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (Sahpra) and the storage conditions for the batches had been extended from "4.5 months to six months at 2-8 Cas a once-off approval".
This, he said, means the batches will only expire on 27 September.
In a statement this week, J&J said the shelf life of the vaccine had been extended by six months.
"We are pleased to confirm the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has extended the shelf life for the Johnson & Johnson single-shot Covid-19 vaccine to six months. The decision is based on data from ongoing stability assessment studies, which have demonstrated the vaccine is stable at six months when refrigerated at temperatures of 36–46 degrees Fahrenheit (2 – 8 degrees Celsius)," the company said in a statement.
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