Exactly 12 months after Mayor London Breed gloomily announced that she would shut down San Francisco in the face of the coronavirus, she received an injection of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on Tuesday. It was a small sign of hope after a brutal year.
“It was important for me to make sure that I not only received this vaccine, but, more importantly, that I demonstrate, as the city leader, that it is safe,” said Breed.
The mayor received the single-dose vaccine at the Maxine Hall Health Center in Western Addition, where she was raised by her grandmother in a public building. The neighborhood has one of the highest case rates in the city and a low vaccination rate compared to the rest of San Francisco.
Breed said he has heard of many African American and Latino communities who are nervous about the possibility of receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. She purposely had her chance in the public eye – as several TV cameras and reporters watched – so that she could encourage those who may be hesitant, especially when it comes to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
“What we are trying to do is demonstrate that they are not going to be used as experiments,” she said. “And if I did that, I hope they’ll say, ‘Okay, I’ll do it too.'”
Breed praised the efficacy and efficiency of the Johnson & Johnson injection and said the community should be confident that it is as good as Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. Unlike the other two vaccines, Johnson & Johnson requires only one injection. All three vaccines are about 100% effective in preventing hospitalization and death.
But some fear the Johnson & Johnson vaccine because of its slightly lower efficacy rate than the other two in preventing mild to moderate disease.
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are 95% effective in preventing symptomatic COVID-19. One-shot Johnson & Johnson prevents about 85% of serious illnesses. It can also be stored in a normal refrigerator, unlike the other two. People achieve full immunity more quickly with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine – about four weeks after the injection, compared with 10 days to two weeks after the second injection for the other two.
Exactly a year after Mayor London Breed gloomily announced
Breed said the city is very likely to prioritize the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for homeless people – who are now eligible for the vaccine, regardless of age – since it is just an injection.
When health professionals are going to vaccinate people with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, Breed said: “I want them to be able to say that this is the same injection the mayor took.”
UCSF infectious disease specialist Dr. Monica Gandhi said it was an “incredibly strong statement” for Breed to get his vaccine so publicly.
“I think it is a profound and symbolic gesture by an African American mayor to show her African American residents that she is very convinced of the vaccine’s safety and effectiveness,” said Gandhi. “I think it’s an incredible thing to do.”
After Breed’s comments to the press on Tuesday, she was directed to a tent at the makeshift vaccine clinic on the health center’s tennis courts. Then she took off her blue blazer and a nurse poked her with a needle. The mayor did not hesitate.
“That’s it!” she said, ecstatic. “I’m fine, Mom, I’m fine!”
Breed’s injection came a week after Dr. Nadine Burke Harris – California’s surgeon general, who is black – received an injection from Johnson & Johnson at the Oakland Coliseum as part of a public relations trip to convince people of that the single vaccine is as good as Pfizer and Moderna.
But even with a third vaccine available from Johnson & Johnson, San Francisco still has a long way to go until the entire population over 16 is vaccinated. City officials say the city is being hampered by a limited supply from the state – a claim they have been making since the vaccine was launched.
As of Tuesday, 31% of the city’s population over 16 has received at least one dose of the vaccine. In the Western Addition, only 3% of the neighborhood’s population received at least one dose.
The city is focusing on making its distribution as equitable as possible. According to city data, 3.3% of the city’s vaccine supply went to blacks, who represent 4.9% of the general population of San Francisco. Meanwhile, 10.3% of the city’s supply went to Hispanics and Latinos, who represent 14.1% of the city’s general population.
San Francisco also increased the number of people eligible to receive vaccines on Monday. Persons aged 16 to 64 with disabilities or other health conditions that put them at high risk for serious illness or death due to COVID-19 are now eligible.
Those who live or work in high-risk group care settings – including correctional facilities, shelters for the homeless and residential care and treatment facilities – are also eligible, as are people living on the streets.
Dr. Grant Colfax, director of the Department of Public Health, encouraged those who are eligible to “keep trying” to get an appointment. But, he said, it will still “take a little more time” for there to be wider availability.
“We’ll get there,” he said. “When more supplies arrive, you can make that commitment for yourself, your loved ones, or your neighbors and friends.”
Trisha Thadani is a writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: [email protected] Twitter: @TrishaThadani