Japan gives the first COVID-19 vaccinations to Tokyo health professionals

Japan initiated the launch of the COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, starting with an initial group of 40,000 health professionals before expanding its inoculation program to cover the elderly and people with pre-existing illnesses.

The first injections were given at a state hospital in Tokyo, with vaccination scheduled for 100 medical facilities across Japan next week. The country has been relatively slow in launching vaccines against the new coronavirus, starting its program after at least 70 other countries.

The start of vaccinations comes with less than six months for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s public support wanes amid criticism of a slow response to the pandemic.

Of the initial group of health workers, 20,000 will participate in a study to track the side effects potentially caused by the vaccine developed by the American pharmaceutical company Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE in Germany, and the frequency with which they occur.

They will be asked to keep daily records for seven weeks after taking the first of two injections. The injections will be given three weeks apart.

The medical facilities were equipped with ultracold freezers, capable of storing the vaccine at minus 75 degrees Celsius. Once withdrawn, doses should be kept refrigerated and used within five days.

Another 3.7 million frontline health workers are expected to start receiving vaccines in March, followed by 36 million people aged 65 and over starting in April.

People with pre-existing illnesses, such as diabetes or heart disease, and those working in care institutions for the elderly will follow, and finally, the general population.