Japan to start vaccinations for elderly on April 12

I am living now in the EU. If the vaccine suppliers keep their supply plans, I will get a vaccination in 7 months! The EU (vaccine) bashers in this forum should address their frustration towards countries which do not export vaccines.

@GdTokyo

It was in response to someone saying Vaccine caused deaths.

I pointed out that only 500 people that received the vaccine out if 38 million died after getting the vaccine, I pointed out most were over 79 years old for a reason.

Not a single case of anyone dying from the vaccine has been reported.

The only person I know who had covid had a 2 days flu-like symptoms.

I know 4 that have died

3 elderly family members and the 27? Year old son of my friend, he was a strong healthy man, a paramedic in search and rescue no underlying conditions got covid as a first responder and died from covid-19 pneumonia.

So healthy doses not mean safe just means safer than those not as healthy.

In the USA 37 million Vaccines given, around 500 death occurred after vaccination, of those the vast majority were between the ages of 79 and 90.

Unless you can provide a valid citation, I’m calling bs on this. In fact, There are no reports of people dying as a result of the vaccine.

But let me guess. You read it on Facebook.....

Why is the Japanese Government so tight-lipped on the status of the local vaccines?

There are none, though Astra-Zeneca are planning to produce some here, probably with Daiichi-Sankyo.

The latter are researching nafamostat mesilate as intra-nasal treatment too, with clinical trials possibly starting next month.

AntiquesavingToday 10:20 am JST

You do not need to worry if you are healthy.

Really better start getting off the antibacterial site and on to real news.

We are seeing more and more reports of healthy younger people dying from covid-19 then their are the long term effects from having it that are being reported on many young healthy people that only had mild cases.

Please stop with the false information.

Please explain what is a false information.

Why to worry if worry if we are really healthy.

Many of the young who unfortunately died are actually overweight. Overweight, ie obesity, is a factor.

Media do keep reporting about people with symptoms, or have long time effect, but we do not even know how much percentage this represent. Media do never report about the ones who recovered perfectly or never had any significant symptoms, which is a huge percentage. The only person I know who had covid had a 2 days flu-like symptoms.

Why is the Japanese Government so tight-lipped on the status of the local vaccines? This is not the time for stereotypical inscrutability.

In the USA 37 million Vaccines given, around 500 death occurred after vaccination, of those the vast majority were between the ages of 79 and 90.

Now compare that to. 28 million cases of covid and 500,000 deaths

Now you choose which has a better results.

We are also seeing more and more reports of healthy younger people dying soon after vaccination. Not so much in the MSM, but they are still occurring.

That is also completely expected, because more young people are now being vaccinated, so the reports inevitably will come closer to the expected incidence of deaths from the unvaccinated population.

If the rates of death on young people is of 1 in 1000 for unvaccinated people per year, and you vaccinate only 10,000 people you would expect maybe one person dying in the first month, but if you vaccinate one million, that would mean 83 of them would die on that first month, 20 per week, just because that is the usual rate.

Thinking that this normal and expected occurrence (not higher than non-vaccinated people) is caused by the vaccine is deeply illogical.

We are also seeing more and more reports of healthy younger people dying soon after vaccination. Not so much in the MSM, but they are still occurring.

Please give a credible example.

Note the not in the MSM why? Because they fact check unlike the fake news sites you are probably going to tell us to see!

@daito_hak

Actually yes rapid nation and worldwide vaccination is how we start getting back to a semblance of normal.

Everything you wrote does not change the fact until all that is reached the best way to achieve some normality is vaccination.

You picked from what you wanted and ignore the other stuff where it clearly says vaccination will play a major role.

I never said healthy people will be fine, but if we are healthy, the chances to get some heavy symptoms and long term effects is really low. So why healthy people should worry. Should healthy people worry for everything virus, every disease around, etc…… That's for hypochondriac.

Those chances decrease 20 times with the vaccine, that is a perfectly valid reason to vaccinate. If you have to choose between having one in 1,000 chances of dying, or one in 20,000 chances of dying you don't have to be an hypochondriac to chose the second option.

No this is not easy like that, and because you don't really seem to have the qualification to understand this subject or because you don't bother to read the literature, you just keep doing grotesque simplifications (eg. the term ""escape-mutant strains" is really sloppy). Here is a paper that tries to predict with modeling the trajectory of the virus towards endemicity using multiple factors. Of course, I am just providing here a non-exhaustive description of the points they make and use terms directly from the paper.

That is not the case at all, for example escape-mutant strains is a perfectly valid and common term for variants that are able to escape immunity that would neutralize previous strains

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=%22escape-mutant%22+strains&sort=date

None of what you wrote disproves or even says it is less likely that herd immunity can be obtained by vaccination, it only makes the case for one scenario based on assumptions coming from endemic coronaviruses, which already have been proved to produce a very different immune reaction from the highly-pathogenic coronaviruses (in particular based on broad innate immunity) there is still no indication this particular kind of immune reactivity will happen to COVID-19, and instead long term protective immunity can be observed years after patients recovered from the first SARS pandemic. (references 19 to 21 in your reference)

There is of course value on analyzing this scenario, but the paper makes no conclusion saying this is the only possibility nor that is more likely than achieving protective sterilizing immunity to a degree that could interrupt transmission. This is because it parts from a given result (endemicity) so obviously making this end result the only possibility to be considered would be a textbook example of circular logic (this virus will become endemic because it adapts like them, and this virus adapts like those viruses because it will become endemic).

So this is not as easy as just saying "let interrupt the transmission" or speaking about strains without any scientifically strong arguments. 

Yes it is, there is no negative effect expected if we can interrupt transmission, and aiming for ti with vaccination has a very high chance to lower the number of victims and lower the risk of appearance of escape-mutants, which until now have not yet been identified. Until there is enough information that vaccination do not reduce transmission to levels enough to interrupt transmission this is still a viable option.

We are seeing more and more reports of healthy younger people dying from covid-19 then their are the long term effects from having it that are being reported on many young healthy people that only had mild cases.

We are also seeing more and more reports of healthy younger people dying soon after vaccination. Not so much in the MSM, but they are still occurring.

That's why its not in any credible mainstream media...

"Credible" and "mainstream media" do not go together...

 rapid, nation-wide vaccination is the absolute minimum requirement for economic recovery

No, see same response above. The reality is more complicated.

 because the more people is immunized the closer we are to interrupt transmission of the pandemic and social distancing measures can be reduced or discarded, because the less people are infected the less likely escape-mutant strains can appear.

No this is not easy like that, and because you don't really seem to have the qualification to understand this subject or because you don't bother to read the literature, you just keep doing grotesque simplifications (eg. the term ""escape-mutant strains" is really sloppy). Here is a paper that tries to predict with modeling the trajectory of the virus towards endemicity using multiple factors. Of course, I am just providing here a non-exhaustive description of the points they make and use terms directly from the paper.

The transition of the virus from epidemic to endemic dynamics is associated with a sift of the infections to the younger age group. Once the endemic phase is reached and primary exposure is in childhood, SARS-CoV-2 may become no more virulent than the common cold observed with others HCoVs. This is also because the overall infection fatality ratio of emerging coronaviruses once they reach endemicity is strongly influenced by the IFR of young children in the initial epidemic. In fact, SARS-CoV-2, has a low IFR in young people.

The paper considers also the influence of strain variation and vaccination. Strain variation and antibody escape can occur in endemic strains but because the symptoms are mild, the immunity induced from previously seen strains is strong enough to prevent severe disease. This is observed on other HCoVs where frequent reinfection appear to boost immunity against related strains. A vaccine could accelerate establishment of a state of mild disease endemicity depending on the type of immune response it engenders. If frequent boosting of immunity by the virus circulation is required to maintain protection from pathology, them the paper suggests that it may best for the vaccine to mimic natural immunity to the extent that it protects from severe pathology without blocking ongoing virus circulation.  Should the vaccine cause a significant reduction of the virus circulation, it might be important to consider strategies that target the vaccination of older individuals with higher morbidity and mortality risks, while allowing natural immunity and transmission to be maintained in younger individuals.

So this is not as easy as just saying "let interrupt the transmission" or speaking about strains without any scientifically strong arguments. I invite you to fully read the paper since it is very informative if you really bother about going beyond simplistic made-up point of view on a s subject that like other scientific field requires method and rigor.

https://science.sciencemag.org/content/371/6530/741

You do not need to worry if you are healthy.

Really better start getting off the antibacterial site and on to real news.

We are seeing more and more reports of healthy younger people dying from covid-19 then their are the long term effects from having it that are being reported on many young healthy people that only had mild cases.

Please stop with the false information.

I do not need that vaccine but will be forced as countries are preparing this vaccine passport which will become a condition for traveling. Now, in Israel, it is a condition to get a proof of vaccination to go to restaurants, concerts, etc… They use an app with a QR code… But people have still to wear a mask. What’s the point to get a vaccine if it is to keep wearing masks and continuing this sanitary circus. The vaccine do not prevent to get the covid anyway, just reducing the risks of transmission and developing heavy symptoms.

I’m 50 with no real underlying health conditions

, but damn it, I want want to get vaccinated, stop worrying and get on with my life!

You do not need to worry if you are healthy.

half of whom are participating in a study to track potential side effects.

I hope in addition to tracking side effects and doing other health related research the government is looking at the logistics of vaccinating large numbers of people. I have family in two different US states who have been extremely positive about how efficient things have gone for them. I know it's got to be seen from a state by state, locality by locality standpoint, but maybe the Japanese government should look at places that have been successful as models, and places that have not been successful to learn from their mistakes. Quick anecdote: a family member had his appointment at 5:18 in the morning (Shinkansen time or what) and got his shot at 5:20 - without having to leave his car. He drove him with no arm pain.

April?! Don't rush or anything...

I’ve been dealing with the virus for a year in Japan.

Why would I need a vaccination?

maybe something special is in that vaccine they want everyone to have without forced inoculation

with new variations the vaccines might even be useless.

No and it has already been debunked.

The present Vaccines are less effective but still work 50% vs 70%~90% considering that 50% effectiveness was the original goal and seen in the Vaccine circle as effective it is still very good.

And as all the vaccine makers and experts have pointed out the method used to produce the vaccine means tweeking it to be more effective on variants will not be difficult.

I’ll take it for me and the hundreds of students who I am in contact with daily at work. All those students have their families and loved ones who might be at risk.

Teachers should be given high priority. Just one point on the graph, but one of my child's classmates was sent to school on a Monday while his mother, who had symptoms, waited for a PCR test result. This came out on the Monday positive, so the whole class was shut down for three days until the classmate too was tested and given the all-clear. Had the classmate come out positive, it would have been ten days or two weeks or whatever off for the whole class. Thankfully the selfish act of sending the kid in without waiting for the test result (one day!) only cost the other kids three missed days.

Anyway, if there are parents out there as stupid and irresponsible as the above, teachers need to be protected from them.

Any Japanese over 60 doesn't need to vaccinate, most of them are healthier than the young generation.

You should check the facts before posting false information.

Japan is one of the countries with the highest use of influenza vaccination in the world especially the elderly,

It is a regular thing for most elderly to get their yearly Vaccine.

Please stop spreading misinformation.

Just a bit of back of the napkin calculation with some overly simple assumptions (that I admit are not totally accurate, but am using for illustrative purposes) to show the task in front of us.

Let's assume that the population of Japan is 127 million people. Assume we want 100% vaccination and that every person needs 2 shots. That is 254 million jabs.

Now let's assume that 100% of the vaccine is made overseas and that it has to all be air-lifted to Japan.

Assume that cargo capacity of the freighters used is constant at 450,000 does per shipment.

That would require 565 individual shipments to obtain enough vaccine. At the current rate of 1 shipment per week, it would take 10 years and 7 months.

Now granted, I know that 100% is not a feasible goal, with the J&J vaccine, not everyone needs 2 shots, and some vaccine will be produced domestically under license. My point here is that 1 shipment a week is not going to get things done and the government needs to move with the same sense of urgency that other governments are.

Even if one discounts the risk of the virus to him or herself (not a rational calculation in my opinion) and views the issue from a purely economic perspective, rapid, nation-wide vaccination is the absolute minimum requirement for economic recovery. There will be no recovery in the absence of confidence in public health. It is that simple.

I am a teacher.

one of classes has over 45 students in it.

I have a slightly weaker immune system.

I will be getting the vaccine.

I’ll take it for me and the hundreds of students who I am in contact with daily at work. All those students have their families and loved ones who might be at risk.

The third shipment of Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE's vaccine has been approved by the European Union and is expected to arrive on March 1

I will believe that when it actually happens.

Canada, Sweden the Balkan countries, and plenty more had their shipments approved and scheduled them nothing.

Expect another "unexpected delay" announcement especially since after several bad public relations stories pointed out the EU hadn't delivered a single dose to any poor Covax recipient country and blocked delivery to the Balkan countries, Turkey, Mexico, Chile, etc...and that Russia and China stepped in to supply them.

Now suddenly the EU found Vaccine to send to it's first Covax poor country.

An attempt at saving face but now we have to ask are the delays announced this week because of that.

Yes the Covax is AZ but seems taken from EU supply and we know they will not slow their Vaccine programs down so Pfizer will be where they make up that.

So again don't hold your breath that the shipment comes on time.

The vaccine will start just on time so we can celebrate the Olympics as victory of humanity over the deadly virus.

Oh wait,but the virus is still killing millions of people worldwide and with new variations the vaccines might even be useless.

"Yeah, the delay by "technical issues" means how earlier this week the government literally "found" an extra ONE MILLION health care workers they need to vaccinate (which they somehow misplaced?)"

and the The EU and Pfizer production delays had nothing to do with it? More health care workers signed up for the vaccine that is why 1 million had to be added to the Talley . It is a good sign because it shows that people are over coming their reluctance to get the vaccine.

"Why are they inoculating members of the Self-Defense Forces in the first wave. Even the US hasn't done that. "

LOL. Really? Please read the following:

Moderna coronavirus vaccine arrives at US bases in Japan for priority inoculations

https://www.stripes.com/news/pacific/moderna-coronavirus-vaccine-arrives-at-us-bases-in-japan-for-priority-inoculations-1.656496

think and read

While I am glad that an effective vaccine is here, and I support the priorities of health care workers and the elderly, I have to say that I am frustrated with the slow roll-out.

Why didn’t the government get ready for when the vaccine became available? Why didn’t they push harder for more vaccine? Why aren’t we (Japan, as a 26 year PR, I will put myself in the “we” category) pushing 100 million jabs in 100 days like America?

There are many valid criticisms of the US roll-out, but it seems to be ramping up quickly.

I’m 50 with no real underlying health conditions and I am careful. I stay home, I wear a mask, my hands are raw from scrubbing.

I understand why I am down the list a ways, but damn it, I want want to get vaccinated, stop worrying and get on with my life!

It’s very frustrating that the government seems to be walking to the goal line.

This all about vaccine thing is like a stamp. Once u get it, you become a robot, life won't be the same as u were as human.

This makes no sense, everybody keep living normal lives (more time even) after vaccinations, this is nothing specially new and has been with us for most of the modern time. If you want to believe in the mistaken idea that the vaccines are more dangerous than the infection you are free to do it, but it is still easy to demonstrate it as wrong.

I’ve been dealing with the virus for a year in Japan.

Why would I need a vaccination?

Because it is less risky than the virus, because it is very likely that it will reduce importantly transmission so you can protect vulnerable people that you are in contact with, because the more people is immunized the closer we are to interrupt transmission of the pandemic and social distancing measures can be reduced or discarded, because the less people are infected the less likely escape-mutant strains can appear.

I’ve been dealing with the virus for a year in Japan.

Why would I need a vaccination?

not enough vaccine to cover everyone in Japan at least better than nothing

Vaccinations of the elderly will start on a small scale to work out any distribution and technical issues before ramping up nationwide from April 26

Yeah, the delay by "technical issues" means how earlier this week the government literally "found" an extra ONE MILLION health care workers they need to vaccinate (which they somehow misplaced?)

Seriously, its too ridiculous to make up. See here:

"Vaccines for older people delayed as Japan finds 1 million more health workers"

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2021/02/23/national/coronavirus-japan-vaccinations/

This all about vaccine thing is like a stamp. Once u get it, you become a robot, life won't be the same as u were as human.

Every year people who travel gets flu jab, now will u also vaccine this every year? Getting side effects everytime u get injected is more dangerous than not having one. Eat, think, live healthily.

Any Japanese over 60 doesn't need to vaccinate, most of them are healthier than the young generation.

Why are they inoculating members of the Self-Defense Forces in the first wave. Even the US hasn't done that. I would rather they give it to all the workers dealing with elderly people first who are most at risk.

Japan is aiming to procure enough doses for its population of 126 million by June

Sounds good to me!

With a little luck I can get my first shot around August September.

Inoculation of a further 4.7 million front-line health care workers -- including doctors, nurses, paramedics and Self-Defense Forces personnel -- will begin in March,

Very nice!

As of Wednesday, close to 18,000 people in the country had received the first of two shots

Alright, things started already!