Japan Eyes Suspension Of Moderna Vax Use

Japan's health ministry said Thursday it has received reports from multiple mass vaccination centers in the country that some portions of the unused doses of Moderna Inc.'s COVID-19 vaccine have been found to contain foreign materials, according to a Kyodo News dispatch.

Photo Insert: The Moderna COVID vaccine uses mRNA technology and is the two doses required are given four weeks apart.

Japanese drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., which is in charge of sales and distribution of the Moderna vaccine in Japan, said it is suspending the use of 1.63 million doses as a precaution.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, and the company said they have yet to see any reports of safety concerns over the issue.

According to the ministry, Moderna promised to launch an investigation into the matter. Takeda had requested an emergency probe by the U.S. biotechnology firm, while urging medical institutions and other entities not to use any doses of the vaccine showing abnormality, even for doses not subject to the suspension.

The Japanese company added it will make efforts to prevent the suspension from affecting the availability of coronavirus vaccine doses in the country.

The problem came to light at a time when Japan is struggling to contain a spike in coronavirus infections, with the government announcing a plan Wednesday to place eight more prefectures under its COVID-19 state of emergency.

While vaccinations against COVID-19 are underway in Japan, the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus has sent daily reported cases surging in many parts of the country.

Over 10 million doses have already been used in the country since the Moderna vaccine was approved for emergency use in May, according to the government.

The Japanese government signed a contract with Moderna to receive 50 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of September. Currently, people aged 12 and over can receive shots of the vaccine.

The Moderna vaccine has mainly been administered at the country's mass vaccination centers and business offices. The vaccine uses a new technology called messenger RNA, or mRNA, and is administered in two doses given four weeks apart.

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