* Britain reduces order of J&J shot by 10 million doses
* J&J Janssen shot the fourth COVID-19 vaccine to be
approved
* J&J has faced issues with supply, rare blood clots
(Recasts, adds Prime Minister's comment)
By Alistair Smout
LONDON, May 28 (Reuters) - Britain's medicine regulator has
approved Johnson & Johnson's Janssen COVID-19 vaccine
for use, the health ministry said on Friday, adding the
government had cut its order for the vaccine by 10 million
doses.
The shot is the fourth COVID-19 vaccine approved in Britain,
and the government said it would be available for use later in
2021 without specifying when.
Britain reduced its order to 20 million doses from 30
million doses as the country's vaccine rollout progresses, while
the company also faces issues with its supplies to Europe and
reports of rare blood clots.
"This is very welcome news and another boost to our hugely
successful vaccination programme," Prime Minister Boris Johnson
said on Twitter.
Britain has given two-thirds of its adult population a first
COVID-19 shot, and the government cited the "unprecedented scale
and pace" of the rollout as behind the decision to cut its
order.
However, Health Minister Matt Hancock maintained that the
J&J shot would still play a key role. Britain has also approved
vaccines made by Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Moderna
.
"As Janssen is a single-dose vaccine, it will play an
important role in the months to come as we redouble our efforts
to encourage everyone to get their jabs and potentially begin a
booster programme later this year," Hancock said.
J&J's vaccine is already approved in the United States and
European Union, where reports of rare blood clots are being
reviewed.
The shot uses similar viral vector technology to the
Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, where similar clots have been
reported.
British officials have advised that under-40s are offered an
alternative to the AstraZeneca shot, and the government said
that the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI)
would also advise on how J&J's shot was used.
The government said the shot would be available later in the
year. There have been reports that J&J expects to miss its
delivery targets for the European Union this quarter.
(Reporting by Alistair Smout; editing by Michael Holden, Kate
Holton and David Evans)