1.6M Moderna coronavirus vaccine doses to be recalled in Japan because of 'foreign substances'

By Ahmet Furkan Mercan

TOKYO (AA) - More than 1.6 million doses of the Moderna coronavirus vaccines will be recalled in Japan because of “foreign substances,” company officials said Sunday.

Moderna and its Japanese sales and distribution partner, Takeda, made the decision about the recall.

The doses with foreign substances and contamination will be recalled.

The Japanese Health Ministry announced last week that unused Moderna vaccine vials were contaminated and some vials contained foreign substances.

The ministry then announced that the use of approximately 1.6 million doses of Moderna’s vaccines produced in Spain was suspended as a precaution.

Takeda said that as a safety precaution, doses from the same production line in Spain were suspended in Japan.