Transition of yellow fever immunization environment in Japan

Abstract

Before the approval of one-dose vaccine vials against yellow fever in 2019, the vaccination and an international certificate of vaccination were provided mostly at quarantine stations in Japan. In those days, only five-dose vaccine vials were approved by the government, and were not beneficial for travel clinics in hospital because they needed to collect enough vaccine recipients to avoid waste of the vaccine in the vial. Since one-dose vaccine vials were approved in 2019, several travel clinics in hospital became interested in administrating the vaccine at travel clinics in hospital. The hospital-based yellow fever vaccination is an extremely beneficial environment for pre-travel medical care such as simultaneous vaccination with other vaccines, prompt response to anaphylaxis, prescriptions for malaria prophylaxis and altitude sickness prophylaxis in the same place. However, the travel clinics in hospital which want to start the vaccination against yellow fever need to be certified by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare after receiving mobile vaccination by a quarantine station for about two years. As of December 2024, in addition to 6 quarantine stations, 14 travel clinics were certified and able to provide yellow fever vaccination and an international certificate as well as other pre-travel medical care. In the future, the number of travel clinics in Japan that can administer yellow fever vaccination is expected to further expand.