Catalonia plans to start vaccinating the population aged between 70 and 79 years with Janssen tomorrow

BarcelonaVaccination of the over-70s is accelerating fast. The primary care centers (CAP) will begin injecting the Janssen vaccine to people between aged 70 and 79 this Thursday, as agreed in the Interterritorial Council before controversy broke out over the very rare cases of thrombosis related to its administration. Now, and after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) reaffirmed its confidence in the American preparation, the Spanish government has sent the first 24,000 doses of the European subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson that correspond to Catalonia, which landed this Wednesday afternoon.

The vials of the Janssen vaccine were stored for eight days in a warehouse in Guadalajara owned by the Ministry of Health waiting for the EMA's verdict. This vaccine is the only single-dose vaccine approved and the Health Department is confident that the combination of the Pfizer and Janssen vaccines will speed up the protection of this group. At the moment, 40% of people aged 70 to 79 have already received a first dose.

Primary care will assume the logistics of the vaccination of this population group, as it has already done with the over 80s, which have been prioritised according to pathologies and age, and each health care team will be responsible for calling the population to give appointments. According to government sources, the Janssen and Pfizer vaccines will be used randomly within this age group, although it will be ensured that they are not mixed.

Pilot test at the Fira

The Department of Health will launch next Monday a first pilot test of vaccination for those born between 1952 and 1961 in the Fira de Barcelona to test future large-scale inoculations when the availability of doses is higher. As advanced by La Vanguardia on Monday between 1,000 and 2,000 people will be vaccinated in the Montjuic pavilions. Health Department sources have indicated that the same day will be given more details about the test.

The plan's purpose is to check that the circuits and the organisation planned for mass vaccination work. Fira would have the capacity to inoculate 20,000 doses daily at full capacity. Although last week Catalonia beat its record of inoculations with more than 300,000 weekly doses, there are still not enough vaccines to fully open the large spaces of mass vaccination planned by the Generalitat, such as the or Camp Nou. To activate these facilities, about 400,000 vaccines a week would have to arrive.