Japan has not banned mRNA Covid-19 vaccines

Japan has not banned Covid-19 mRNA vaccines and neither has it urged other countries to do the same, despite widespread claims across X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook, as well as on a number of other blogs and websites, that the country has “just banned Covid mRNA shots for public use”.

False information about health policy may be dangerous if people use it to make decisions about their own health.

Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare has released no statement indicating they have banned or intend to ban these vaccines, and neither have any reputable Japanese or international news sources reported it.

In fact, just last November Japan’s health ministry approved its first domestically developed Covid vaccine, which uses mRNA technology, to target an omicron variant of the virus.

Full Fact has contacted the Embassy of Japan in the UK to confirm if a ban has been imposed on the vaccine. We will update this fact check when we receive a reply.

It is possible that the claim stems from a misunderstanding of a change to Japan’s Covid vaccination programme.

In September 2023, it was reported that Japan would end a temporary programme that  offers free Covid vaccinations to all at the end of March 2024.

Covid vaccination costs in Japan have until now been covered by public funds.

Image courtesy of Guus Baggermans