Japan set to approve Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for inoculation of 12 to 15-year-olds

The Japan Health Ministry panel has approved expanding the use of the US's Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 12 to 15 and also for those who are 16 and above. On May 31, their health ministry is expected to decide at a meeting to provide the vaccine free for those aged between 12 and 15, as per a report in Kyodo News.

The Japanese government approved the Pfizer vaccine in February and began vaccinating their health care workers and inoculation for the elderly began in April. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga had pledged to vaccinate the country’s roughly 36 million elderly population by the end of July. Pfizer has been working with the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency in Japan to expand the authorization of its vaccines for younger people.

As per an ANI report, Japan is receiving enough Pfizer vaccines for 97 million people. American company Moderna Inc. has also released clinical study results showing the effectiveness of its vaccine in children between the ages of 12 and 17 and is preparing to expand its use for them in some countries. 

Japan Approves Moderna & AstraZeneca

On May 21, the Japanese government had approved two new vaccines- Moderna and AstraZeneca, hours ahead of the extension of the emergency, put in place in order to curtail the spread of Coronavirus, to May 31, which was earlier slated to end on May 11, 2021. It is pertinent to mention here that till now, Japan has roughly inoculated a million people, or just 4 percent of the population, using the Pfizer vaccines. It is part of the latest efforts to contain a worrying surge in infections in the country, which is set to host the opening of the Tokyo Olympics. 

(With ANI Inputs)