Photo/Illutration Moderna Inc.’s BA.5-tailored COVID-19 vaccines (Provided by Moderna Inc.)

The days of free COVID-19 vaccine shots in Japan may be numbered.

The Finance Ministry on Nov. 7 asked an advisory panel to start discussing possible charges for the COVID-19 shots, like the ones for influenza.

The ministry said the government has covered all the costs for COVID-19 vaccines in an “unprecedented response,” and this arrangement must end sooner or later.

It said the inoculation program has put a huge financial burden on the central government, and the public should copay for future shots.

According to the ministry, influenza vaccination operations targeting 36 million people 65 years old or older cost the government 95.2 billion yen ($645.5 million) in fiscal 2021.

In comparison, the overall cost to the government for the COVID-19 vaccine program for 120 million people aged 5 and older was 2.34 trillion yen.

The ministry said the financial burden increased when the government provided generous assistance to municipal governments and health care organizations in summer 2021 to administer COVID-19 shots to as many people as possible in a short period of time.

The administration of one COVID-19 shot cost about 10,000 yen for the government, compared with 5,000 yen for a flu shot.

The ministry told the panel to weigh such factors as the rate of COVID-19 patients developing severe symptoms to decide when to abolish the special measure.

At that juncture, the central government will likely subsidize municipal governments for part of the vaccine costs through a local allocation tax.

Municipal governments will likely charge residents for the remaining costs.

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