Japan vaccine chief says to use six-dose syringes from mid-April

By Jeff Mason Posted on March 12, 2021

A medical worker holds a vial of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine at Tokyo Medical Center as Japan launches its inoculation campaign

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan will use specialised syringes capable of extracting six doses of coronavirus vaccine from each Pfizer vial from the week of April 12 to inoculate medical workers, Taro Kono, the minister overseeing the vaccination effort, said on Friday.

Most of Japan’s stock of syringes consists of regular versions that can draw just five doses from each vial, sparking fears that millions of doses could be wasted.

(Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)