Takashi Kimura, vice governor of Kumamoto Prefecture, explains the guidelines for dealing with canceled vaccine appointments at the prefectural government office in Kumamoto on May 19. (Shomei Nagatsuma)
KUMAMOTO--To justify getting COVID-19 shots ahead of the elderly or medical personnel, Kumamoto officials here have made the practice permissible for local government heads and others if there are cancellations of appointments.
The Kumamoto prefectural government, its mayors’ association and other groups made the guidelines on May 19 to allow municipal heads and others to receive vaccine shots in the event of cancellations.
It marks the first time in Japan that such a guideline on vaccinations has been created, according to a prefectural official.