Janssen pauses production of its Covid vaccine, says New York Times

Janssen quietly shut down the only one of its units still making usable batches of its Covid-19 vaccine late last year, the New York Times reported, citing a person familiar with the decision.

The suspension is temporary, and the Leiden plant is expected to resume vaccine production within a few months again, the NYT report said.

Janssen has millions of doses of its Covid-19 vaccine in stock and continues to supply all of its filling and formulation facilities, including in Aspen, with the inputs needed to produce the immunizer, the company said in an email.

“We continue to fulfill our contractual obligations towards the Covax Facility and the African Union,” the drugmaker said.

The facility in the Dutch city of Leiden has been manufacturing an experimental but potentially more profitable vaccine to protect against an unrelated virus, according to the report.

Last month, the drugmaker forecast $3.5 billion in sales of its Covid-19 vaccine in 2022, up 46% but still underperforming its competitors.

The company reported sales of $2.39 billion for the Covid-19 vaccine in 2021, missing its own goal of $2.5 billion, after a year marked by manufacturing difficulties, safety concerns and uneven demands. by an immunizer that has already been celebrated as a promising tool to immunize populations in hard-to-reach regions.