TOKYO (AP) – Japan formally approved its first COVID-19 vaccine on Sunday, saying it would start nationwide vaccinations within days, but months behind the US and many other countries.
The Japanese Ministry of Health said it had approved the vaccine co-developed and supplied by Pfizer Inc.
The announcement comes after a government panel on Friday confirmed that the final results of clinical trials in Japan showed that the vaccine had similar efficacy to what foreign tests showed.
Many countries started vaccinating their citizens late last year, and Pfizer’s vaccine has been used elsewhere since December.
Under the current plan, approximately 20,000 primary care medical workers in hospitals in Japan will receive their first shots from Wednesday. About 3.7 million other medical workers will be next, followed by the elderly, who are expected to receive their injection in April. All others are expected to be eligible by June.
Health ministry official Yuta Yamashita said the vaccinations could begin once a panel from the vaccination logistics ministry gives the green light.
Approval was granted in a special accelerated process for emergency use. It took two months compared to the usual year in a country known for its cautious and slow approval processes.
Still, the rollout in Japan is months behind many other countries, as the government had requested home clinical tests in addition to multinational tests that Pfizer conducted on more than 40,000 people from July to November. Many countries accepted Pfizer’s results and moved forward.
In a country where many people are skeptical of vaccines, Japan looked for additional tests to address the safety concerns. But the tests were conducted on just 160 people, and some are wondering if it was worth delaying the rollout.
Vaccines are considered key to holding the postponed Tokyo Olympics this summer. Japan is expected to receive 144 million doses from Pfizer, 120 million from AstraZeneca and about 50 million from Moderna by the end of this year, enough to cover the population.
Vaccines being developed by Japan are still in the early stages, so the country is dependent on imports. AstraZeneca has only recently applied for approval in Japan, while Moderna has not yet filed. Japan’s dependence on imports, many of which are subject to EU export controls, is also a source of concern over supplies.
Shigeru Omi, the head of the government’s coronavirus task force, earlier this month cited a lack of global competitiveness of Japanese drugs as the reason for the delayed rollout.
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