Vaccination of health workers will begin in Japan, with elderly people scheduled for April

The first doses of Pfizer Inc.’s COVID-19 vaccine will begin to be administered to 40,000 essential workers in 100 medical facilities on Wednesday, said Taro Kono, the minister in charge of vaccines, during a news conference on Tuesday.

The same workers will receive their second dose as of March 10.

Kono said it is possible that other medical professionals – those who do not fall into the initial category – could receive their first dose before March 10, once the second doses for essential workers are guaranteed.

Vaccination for older people will begin on April 1, at least, starting after medical workers receive their vaccines, said Kono, adding that city governments were encouraged to spend no more than two months and three weeks to complete this next phase of the process.

Vaccination for the rest of the population will officially begin after that, although it is possible that continuous vaccinations from one prioritized group may overlap with the next.

Separate vaccines from Moderna Inc. and AstraZeneca PLC are awaiting approval, Kono said, although their introduction could speed up the process.

About 64,350 vials of Pfizer vaccine arrived on a chartered flight from the European Union last week. Kono declined to specify when the second flight with additional vials will arrive, but said the central government will ensure that sufficient vaccines will be ensured for the process to proceed smoothly.

The vaccination process in the United States was hampered from the start by significant delays and the distrust of public officials. Kono said Japan will certainly encounter problems when trying to eradicate the virus, but the government is preparing to respond flexibly and quickly to these issues.

Regarding young people, who are more likely to be asymptomatic carriers of the virus, Kono said it is essential that they receive the injection.

“It is very important that young people receive the vaccine to prevent the virus from spreading further,” he said.

With the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games scheduled for the end of July, it remains a major concern whether the spread of the virus will be sufficiently reduced by then.