TOKYO, OCTOBER 29: The COVID-19 booster shot will be made available for all Japanese within the next eight months,once everyone has received their second dose of the vaccine.
No priority is set yet, but according the country’s health ministry, the booster shots are likely to start in December with medical workers.
This decision was made by a Japanese health ministry panel on Thursday.
The ministry’s panel also took into account an international survey, which showed the effectiveness of US drugmaker Pfizer Inc.’s vaccine falling from 88 percent to 47 per cent in five months for individuals aged 12 years and above.
According to news reports by Jiji Press, the country is slated to formally decide on the booster shot plan in November.
Currently, the three types COVID-19 vaccines that are administered in Japan are Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca.
The country has contracts to procure 120 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 50 million doses of the Moderna vaccine for next year.
Those who have not received any dose of the vaccine will have their opportunities to secure inoculation, the health ministry stated.
