Japan to pay families £295,000 if a relative dies as result of Covid vaccine
Families can also receive money to cover funeral costs up to £1,400
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Japan’s Ministry of Health has said it will give 44,200,000 yen (£295,590) to the families of anyone who dies as a result of the Covid-19 vaccine.
Families can also receive money to cover funeral costs up to 209,000 yen (£1,400).
The ministry has offered the compensation for a long time – and for any kind of vaccination, not just Covid-19 jabs – but it was recently highlighted at a budget meeting by the country’s health minister, Norihisa Tamura, according to Japan’s Kyodo news agency.
Mr Norihisa said families could also receive 5,056,800 yen (£33,800) each year if someone suffered a long-term disability from taking the jab.
Japan is currently only receiving limited doses of Covid-19 vaccinations due to limitations in supply, the country’s inoculations chief has said.
The country is currently prioritising shots for the elderly as it waits for more doses of Pfizer Inc’s vaccine, which is Japan’s only approved jab.
While the company ramps up production in Europe, those increased supplies are not likely to reach Japan until May, the country’s administrative reform minister, Taro Kono, warned in an interview with national broadcaster NHK on Sunday.
"We would like to start vaccinations for the elderly in April, but unfortunately the number of doses allocated to them will be very limited at first, so we want to start slowly," Mr Taro said.
Japan has negotiated to receive more than 500 million doses developed by Western drugmakers, but domestic regulators have approved only one vaccine so far.
Additional reporting by Reuters
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments