In the past when any global crisis used to hit the world like Measles, Mumps, and rubella, the Japanese government was always in the front for developing vaccines and treatments for diseases. However, everything changed after the government lost many of the lawsuits in the 1990s, regarding the damages for the side effects of the vaccines made by the Japanese pharmaceutical companies. Today, as the world faces the coronavirus pandemic, Japan seems to be far behind in the coronavirus vaccine race. Of the total 52 vaccine candidates from all around the world, in clinical evaluation, AnGes Inc – Japan’s front runner is the only Japanese contender. AnGes announced it started a mid-to-large stage clinical trial of its DNA based vaccine. While other countries such as the UK and US are already making the vaccines commercially available to their people, Industry sources reveal that Japan will have access to vaccines only after 2022.
Another interesting fact seen in Japan during the coronavirus pandemic is that the country has the lowest rates of deaths and infection rates, even though no high tech apps have been deployed to track the infection among its population. It is a question for many nations, how Japan was successful in containing the virus even though it is far behind in the coronavirus vaccine race and the lack of government to take prevention policy.
The reason for Japan being behind in the coronavirus vaccine race are many, but the main reason that the industry experts and the people believe is the lack of consolidation within the pharmaceutical industry and the government to encourage the development of new vaccines. The lack of initiative taken by the government has prompted many financial and human resources to develop the vaccines, which is resulting in a slow pace of vaccine development in Japan. Japan has faced other obstacles on top of that. Although four major pharmaceutical companies have controlled 70% of the world’s vaccine markets, due to a lack of consolidation in the industry, Japanese pharmaceutical companies have remained much smaller. This has resulted in research and development capabilities and the international competitiveness of Japan to pale over time in contrast to overseas competitors. The nation also needs to get rid of its convoy scheme, which, by paying subsidies to domestic companies, protects industry members from foreign competition while being reluctant to introduce vaccines manufactured overseas.
