Brazil extends validity of J&J COVID vaccine to 4.5 months

BRASILIA - Brazil's health regulator Anvisa has extended the validity of the single-shot Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, prolonging its shelf life from 3 months to 4.5 months, giving the country more time to use a first batch due to arrive this week.

The batch of 3 million doses was due to expire on June 27, but now Brazil has followed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in extending the expiration dates by a month a half. Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga said the vaccines should arrive on Wednesday, a day later than he said last week. Brazil signed an agreement with the J&J-owned Belgian laboratory Janssen to receive 38 million doses for delivery in the last quarter of this year, so the first batch is arriving earlier than originally planned, he told a Senate commission of inquiry last week.