Administrative reform minister Taro Kono is seen at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on March 23, 2021. (Mainichi/Kan Takeuchi)

       TOKYO -- A total of about 11.7 million Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doses will be allocated to local governments across Japan, with distributions taking place every two weeks from July to the end of September, administrative reform minister Taro Kono, who is overseeing the country's vaccine rollout, revealed on July 6.

       Kono also indicated that the central government intends to reduce the amount of supplies for municipalities that have a certain amount of vaccine stock.

       The plan was announced during a July 6 press conference, taking into account local governments' voices demanding that a vaccine rollout schedule be presented at an early date, out of concern for a shortage of supplies. From August, the national government is set to allocate around 590,000 doses to prefecture-run large-scale vaccination venues over two weeks, and will subsequently distribute some 1.76 million doses to prefectures, with discretion to allocate to municipalities based on their population and other factors. The remaining roughly 9.36 million doses will be allocated based on the population of each local body, but local governments with a stock lasting for six weeks or more will be given 10% less doses.

       Furthermore, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare contacted local governments on July 5 regarding the allotment of 12.4 million Pfizer vaccine doses to be distributed over two weeks from July 19.

       (Japanese original by Kazuhiko Hori, Political News Department)

       Font Size S M L Print Timeline 0