TOKYO – Takeda Pharmaceutical has called on the Japanese government to speed up their bid for the Moderna coronavirus vaccine, with plans to start rolling out before June.
Moderna is the third manufacturer of the COVID-19 vaccine that has undergone a regulatory study in Japan, after Pfizer and AstraZeneca. Takeda is the one-stop agent for Moderna vaccine here, handling clinical trials, application filing and distribution.
The filing is based on data from abroad. The application is likely to be decided once results from a Japanese trial with about 200 participants, out in May, have been submitted.
The two-dose vaccine will be imported from European production facilities through logistics companies such as Kintetsu World Express. There are plans to give enough doses to 20 million people by June and for an additional 5 million people by September.
Like the Pfizer vaccine, which has received emergency licensing in Japan, the Moderna product uses messenger RNA technology and does not contain the virus itself. It showed 94.1% efficiency in a Level 3 test with 30,000-plus participants in the US
The vaccine may be stored at a minimum freezing temperature of 20 C for six months and at a cooling temperature of 30 days. It is administered in doses 28 days apart.
Takeda will work with the health ministry to procure 15,000 refrigerators for delivery and storage from Japanese appliance manufacturer Twinbird and elsewhere. Takeda’s 5,000 units will be used for ground transportation, with the 10,000 units purchased by the government going to medical centers.
Japan’s vaccination program has lagged behind Western countries as well as such Asian peers as China and India. Distribution of the Pfizer vaccine began in mid-February, initially restricted to health care workers, and AstraZeneca’s application filed that month is under review.