Japan's cabinet approves plan for free COVID-19 vaccines

[October 27, 2020]  TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's cabinet approved a plan on Tuesday to use public funds to provide novel coronavirus vaccines to the public for free.

The plan also calls for the government to bear the cost of any health damage caused by a vaccine, according to a document posted on the health ministry's website.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has pledged to provide enough vaccines for the coronavirus for the public by mid-2021. Japan has struck deals for hundreds of millions of doses from companies including AstraZeneca Plc and Pfizer Inc.

(Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by Andrew Heavens, Robert Birsel)

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