Overall picture of the COVID-19 vaccination program in Japan

Abstract

In response to the epidemic, a COVID-19 vaccine was developed at an unprecedented speed, and vaccination was carried out on an unprecedented scale.

The COVID-19 vaccination project consists of three fields: science, logistics/practice, and policy, and is the culmination of various attempts among these fields. First, in the field of science, vaccine development, examination/approval, and evaluation of adverse reactions, etc. are carried out. It was necessary to evaluate and verify safety as well as efficacy. Second, in the field of logistics/administration, it is extremely important to secure, supply, and distribute the vaccine, and to build a vaccine administration and execution system. Since the lead time is very long, it was necessary to proceed with preparations while adopting a future outlook. Third, policy decisions were made regarding the construction of a legal framework and the start of vaccinations. In addition, it was very important to appropriately conduct publicity and risk communication, as it is the general public who make the decision to receive the vaccination, in the end.

In this article, I will explain the overall picture of the COVID-19 vaccination project, which consists of these fields, while mentioning various specific attempts to implement the project throughout Japan.