So why has Japan fallen so far behind in vaccinations? This article says one reason is the lack of a Made in Japan vaccine. The Health Ministry's slow pace of approving foreign-made vaccines reminded me of something that I saw, which may be related: (1/6) https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2021/04/28/national/japan-coronavirus-vaccinations-lag/

After the 2011 tsunami, the US Navy allowed me to join helicopters off the Ronald Reagan that were delivering supplies to survivors. The air crews didn't speak Japanese, so they asked me to ask survivors what they needed. The survivors told us two things: fuel and medicine. (2/6)

This was conveyed up to the admiral, who invited me to his stateroom on the carrier. Three Japanese SDF officers were waiting there. After I spoke, the admiral asked them if the Navy could donate headache & cold drugs. They said this should be OK, but they needed to check. (3/6)

The next morning, the Japanese liaisons gave us the bad news: While the SDF welcomed help for survivors, the Ministry of Health in Tokyo had rejected the request overnight. On what grounds? There was no Japanese-language labeling on the boxes of the US medicines. (4/6)

The bureaucrats didn’t care that shivering survivors marooned by the tsunami were sick or in discomfort. They had other, internal priorities, which seemed to be maintaining their control while avoiding any decision that could possibly come back to bite them. (5/6)

In the end, we weren't allowed to give the survivors Tylenol.

The same bureaucratic cover-my-ass-ism is at work now, delaying approval and use of vaccines instead of speeding their introduction. Meanwhile, the Japanese people must endure the worst wave of infections yet. (6/6)