TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — As distribution of the one-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine remains on hold, Florida officials say they plan to resume first doses of the two-dose Pfizer vaccine Tuesday at federally supported sites in Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville and Miami.


What You Need To Know

  •  Starting Tuesday, Florida's FEMA sites will resume first doses of the Pfizer vaccine

  •  FEMA had switched from Pfizer first doses to Johnson & Johnson, but that vaccine has been paused

  • Daily capacity for those Pfizer doses will be lower than before; second doses will continue

  • RELATED: How to get the COVID-19 Vaccine: Central Florida | Tampa

At the same time, the Florida Division of Emergency Management expects “first dose capacity will be lower than the 3,000 doses” the sites had been administering, agency press secretary Samantha Bequer said Friday.

“The state is continuing to work with FEMA to determine first dose capacity under the change in vaccine brands,” Bequer wrote in an email to Spectrum News.

Bequer referred to a pause this week in distribution of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at the recommendation of federal health agencies. That came after six recipients of the vaccine, all women, developed a rare disorder involving blood clots.

Before the pause, for example, Orlando’s Valencia College West vaccination site said it could administer up to 3,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine per day, plus second doses of the Pfizer vaccine.

After the Johnson & Johnson pause this week, the site switched to only second doses of the Pfizer vaccine.

Bequer reiterated that officials expect the federally supported sites to close on May 26.

“The state understands residents may have concerns that they will not be able to receive their second-dose Pfizer vaccine prior to the sites closing,” she wrote to Spectrum News. “However, the state and FEMA are committed to ensuring that all individuals who receive their first dose at a federally-supported vaccination site are able to receive their second dose.”

It wasn't clear yet how that would be implemented.