Lifestyle Health Johnson & Johnson COVID Shot Has Little Effect Against Omicron Variant, According to New Study The report comes after the CDC Advisory Committee’s recommendation on Thursday that adults receive either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines instead of Johnson & Johnson By Stephanie Wenger Stephanie Wenger Instagram Twitter Stephanie Wenger is a TV Writer/Reporter at PEOPLE. She joined the brand in 2021 as digital news writer, spanning across the site's verticals. She previously contributed to E! Online, HollywoodLife, Discover Los Angeles, Oscar.com and Hollywood.com. She appeared on air at AfterBuzz TV. She began her journalism career as an intern at Good Morning America and Access Hollywood. She graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor's in communications and received a Master's in journalism from the University of Southern California. People Editorial Guidelines Published on December 17, 2021 03:00 PM Share Tweet Pin Email Vaccine. Photo: Getty The Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine has little effect against the omicron variant according to a newly released study. The report, which has not been peer reviewed yet, showed that the Johnson & Johnson shot — as well as China's Sinopharm and Russia's Sputnik V vaccines — had no neutralizing activity against the new variant. While the vaccines from Moderna, Pfizer and AstraZenca were better at fighting the omicron variant, they still showed a decrease in effectiveness compared to the original COVID strain, according to the study which was conducted by Humabs Biomed SA, a unit of Vir Biotechnology, and the University of Washington. CDC Advisory Committee Recommends Moderna or Pfizer Vaccines Instead of Johnson & Johnson The study also showed that people who were previously infected by COVID-19 had a less robust immune response to omicron than to other variants. The release of the study comes after the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced on Thursday that they recommend adults select either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines over the Johnson & Johnson shot to get vaccinated against COVID. A child getting a COVID-19 vaccine dose. Getty Doctor Says Fully Vaccinated People Are Going to Test Positive with Omicron: 'Our New Normal' The advisory, which is not yet a formal decision by the CDC, comes after the agency confirmed 54 cases of people developing blood clots showing low platelet levels — a rare condition known as Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS). Nine TTS deaths were reported following the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. TTS deaths were highest among females 30–39 years of age and 40–49 years of age. CDC Warns Rapid Spread of Omicron Could Lead to Massive Spike in COVID Cases by January "The TTS case reporting rates following Janssen [Johnson & Johnson] vaccines is higher than previous estimates in men as well as women in a wider age range," chair of the CDC's vaccine and safety subgroup, Dr. Keipp Talbot, said at a CDC Vaccine Advisory Panel Thursday per CNBC. "We've been struck on reviewing these cases by how rapidly patient status deteriorates and results in death," Dr. Isaac See, who is on the CDC's vaccine safety team, also told the panel. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. More than 17 million people in the United States have received the J&J vaccine, according to the CDC, while just over 285 million Americans have received the Pfizer vaccine and 187 million people got the Moderna vaccine.