Camden County residents received their first dose of the Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine Saturday.
Vaccines were administered at Camden County College's Blackwood campus, where 1,000-1,500 doses of the Moderna vaccine have been administered daily.
The county received 6,000 J&J vaccines. At the campus, 1,500 of J&J vaccines were available.
Last week, the FDA authorized the vaccine for emergency use. According to clinical trials, the J&J vaccine is 66% effective compared to 95% for Moderna and Pfizer. However, J&J is proven to prevent 100% of virus-related hospitalizations and deaths.
With the introduction of the J&J vaccine, officials expect to vaccinate 2,100-2,500 people at the campus on a daily basis.
Nearly 80,000 people are currently scheduled to get vaccinated by the county. A backlog of vaccine hopefuls is causing some to have appointments in December.
The county says about 20% of people in Camden County have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.