The first domestically produced new coronavirus vaccine developed by a Japan pharmaceutical company began in various places this month.
The mRNA vaccine developed by the pharmaceutical giant Daiichi Sankyo began to be administered nationwide this month.
Until now, the new corona vaccine has been used by overseas pharmaceutical companies such as Pfizer and Moderna, but with the approval of this vaccine last month, it is now the first domestically produced vaccine to be used for vaccination.
This vaccine is compatible with the XBB lineage, a variant of the Omicron variant of the new coronavirus, and is intended for people aged 3 and older who receive a third or subsequent booster shot.
At a clinic in Itabashi Ward, Tokyo, which began administering the vaccine on the 12th, residents who had made reservations visited and received the vaccine after listening to a doctor's explanation about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine.
Dr. Masahiko Tabata of the clinic said, "Expectations for the effectiveness of the vaccine are the same as before, but when something happens on the supply side, there is a sense of security that there is a domestically produced product."
In preparation for the winter, when there are concerns about the spread of the new corona infection, vaccination is currently being offered to all people over 13 months old, and those who wish can do so without any out-of-pocket costs.