Japan mobilized military doctors and nurses to give shots to elderly people in Tokyo and Osaka on Monday as the government desperately tries to accelerate its vaccination rollout and curb coronavirus infections just two months before hosting the Olympics.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is determined to hold the Olympics in Tokyo after a one-year delay and has made an ambitious pledge to finish vaccinating the country’s 36 million elderly people by the end of July, despite skepticism it’s possible. Worries about public safety while many Japanese remain unvaccinated have prompted growing protests and calls for canceling the Games set to start on July 23.
Click to Gallery
Japan mobilized military doctors and nurses to give shots to elderly people in Tokyo and Osaka on Monday as the government desperately tries to accelerate its vaccination rollout and curb coronavirus infections just two months before hosting the Olympics.
At the two mass inoculation centers staffed by Japan's Self-Defense Forces, the aim is to inoculate up to 10,000 people per day in Tokyo and another 5,000 per day in Osaka for the next three months.
Japan began vaccinating health care workers in mid-February while sticking to a standard requirement of clinical testing inside Japan — a decision many experts said was statistically meaningless and only caused delay.
Progress is still unclear because of the dire shortage of medical staff who can give shots while they are already busy treating COVID-19 patients. AstraZeneca's plans are also pending due to concerns about its rare blood-clotting in a country known for low confidence in vaccines.
People wait to be processed after arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Medical staff prepare the Moderna coronavirus vaccine for use at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Nurses wait to process people arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
People wait to be processed after arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Nurses wait to process people arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Suga's government has repeatedly expanded the area and duration of a virus state of emergency since late April and has made its virus-fighting measures stricter. But with COVID-19 cases still persistently high, Suga says vaccines are key to getting the infections under control.
A pensioner receives a shot of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
At the two mass inoculation centers staffed by Japan's Self-Defense Forces, the aim is to inoculate up to 10,000 people per day in Tokyo and another 5,000 per day in Osaka for the next three months.
People inoculated at the centers on Monday were the first in Japan to receive doses from Moderna Inc., one of two foreign-developed vaccines Japan approved on Friday.
Previously Japan had used only Pfizer Inc., and only about 2% of the population of 126 million has received the required two doses.
A pensioner receives a shot of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Japan began vaccinating health care workers in mid-February while sticking to a standard requirement of clinical testing inside Japan — a decision many experts said was statistically meaningless and only caused delay.
Vaccinations for the next group — the elderly, who are more likely to suffer serious COVID-19 effects — started in mid-April but has been slwed by bureaucratic bumbling including reservation procedures, unclear distribution plans and shortage of medical staff to give shots.
Completion of Japan-developed vaccines is still uncertain, but Japanese government officials hope the approvals Friday of Moderna and AstraZeneca will help speed up the rollout.
Nurses wait to process people arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Progress is still unclear because of the dire shortage of medical staff who can give shots while they are already busy treating COVID-19 patients. AstraZeneca's plans are also pending due to concerns about its rare blood-clotting in a country known for low confidence in vaccines.
Separately, several local governments, including Aichi in central Japan and Gunma near Tokyo and Miyagi in the north, were also to open their own large vaccination centers on Monday.
A medical staff prepares the Moderna coronavirus vaccines for use at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
People wait to be processed after arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Medical staff prepare the Moderna coronavirus vaccine for use at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Nurses wait to process people arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
People wait to be processed after arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)
Nurses wait to process people arriving to receive the Moderna coronavirus vaccine at the newly-opened mass vaccination center in Tokyo Monay, May 24, 2021. Japan opened mass-vaccination sites in two of the country’s biggest metropolitan areas, Tokyo and Osaka, with the goal of administering the shots to up to 15,000 elderly people a day. (Carl Carl CourtPool Photo via AP)