According to the Japanese government, over 50 percent of Japan’s population is fully vaccinated. Read to know what the 50% vaccination means for Japan.
All about COVID-19 vaccination in Japan
Japan began rolling out vaccines in the middle of February. Japan was months behind several countries due to the long clinical testing and approval process in Japan. Despite roadblocks in inoculating the elderly due to vaccine shortages and delays, they picked up pace in May. Japan has since achieved over 1 million doses daily. “About 60% of the population is expected to be fully vaccinated by the end of September. On par with current levels in Europe,” stated Yasutoshi Nishimura to the NHK public. Nishimura is the Economy Minister of Japan and is in charge of covid-19 measures.
So far, the progress in vaccination is helping reduce severe covid cases and death, especially among the older population. However, the variants of the coronavirus is spreading among youngsters since August. The younger generations are still mostly unvaccinated, leading to a strain on the health care system in Japan.
What does the 50% vaccination mean for Japan?
Additionally, the latest reports and estimations suggest that Japan will reach a 100 percent vaccination rate by November. Moreover, the government is preparing a roadmap to ease restrictions around the same time. Hence, people can soon travel, attend parties and other mass events.
Japan has fared much better than other developed countries, mainly due to social distancing and lockdowns. So far, the country has recorded over 1.65 million positive cases and about 16,500 deaths. Tokyo and 18 other areas are still under the ongoing emergency state until September 30. Moreover, the measures focus on eateries to close early and stop serving alcohol.
