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Japan lists medical workers, elderly people as priority groups to get COVID-19 vaccine

Just Earth News | @justearthnews | 25 Dec 2020

Japan lists medical workers, elderly people as priority groups to get COVID-19 vaccine

Image: Unsplash

Tokyo/Sputnik: An expert group of the Japanese Ministry of Health has identified the categories of citizens who are supposed to be the first to be vaccinated against COVID-19, including medical workers and people over 65.

According to the Japanese media there are three groups for vaccination against COVID-19 — 4 million health workers , about 36 million persons over 65, and about 8.2 million people with preexisting conditions.

As soon as the coronavirus vaccine is registered in Japan, which is likely to occur in February, 10,000 employees of medical institutions will be able to receive vaccination.

Starting from April, people with chronic cardiovascular diseases, diseases of kidneys, lungs, liver, oncology patients, as well as people with obesity (body mass index above 30) also will be able to receive vaccination. A total of 14 types of diseases are listed.

This category does not include pregnant women, as it is not clear yet whether the vaccination is safe for them.