TOKYO – Japan’s Okinawa region today suspended the use of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine after another contamination was detected, said the local government.
This comes a day after the Japanese Health Ministry said it is investigating the death of two men who received shots from tainted Moderna batches – though the cause of their death is unknown.
Okinawa prefecture, located in the country’s south, said today’s vaccination programme is partially postponed.
“We are suspending the use of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccines as foreign substances were spotted in some of them,” it said in a statement.
The lots affected by the contamination detected in Okinawa yesterday are different from the 1.63 million doses suspended after the two deaths, said local media reports.
That suspension came after the ministry said two men, aged 30 and 38, died early this month after getting their second Moderna dose.
Those shots were drawn from one of three batches suspended by the government on Thursday after several vials were found to be contaminated.
The ministry, however, said it is investigating the cause of death, and it is unknown currently if there is a causal link to the vaccine.
“At this time, we do not have any evidence that these deaths are caused by the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine, and it is important to conduct a formal investigation to determine whether there is any connection,” said Moderna and its Japanese distributor Takeda in a joint statement yesterday.
The nature of the particles found in the vials, manufactured by a Moderna contractor in Europe, is also not yet known.
“The vials have been sent to a qualified lab for analysis, and the initial findings will be available early next week,” said Moderna and Takeda.
The contractor, Spanish pharmaceutical firm Rovi, in a statement on Thursday said it is investigating the cause of the contamination in the batch, which was distributed only in Japan.
It added that the issue may have originated from one of its manufacturing lines.
Around 44% of Japan’s population has been fully vaccinated, as the country battles a record surge of coronavirus cases driven by the more contagious Delta variant.
More than 15,800 people have died from the disease in Japan, and large parts of the country are under strict virus restrictions. – AFP, August 29, 2021
