Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Monday that the country is now expected to secure enough coronavirus vaccine doses by September. 

Suga told reporters that he had asked the U.S. drug maker Pfizer Inc. to provide Japan with additional supplies of the COVID-19 vaccine to speed up the inoculation drive and ensure that it will become available become available to all eligible people in the country by September.

“The CEO told me that he wants to advance discussions swiftly,” Suga said, referring to a call with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla that was conducted on Saturday during his trip to the United States.

On surging coronavirus cases in Osaka Prefecture, Suga said the government is “dealing with the situation with an utmost sense of crisis.”

Asked about the possibility of declaring a coronavirus state of emergency for the western prefecture, Suga said that it is currently at the pre-emergency stage. He added that the government will consult with Osaka Prefecture about what to do considering the surge of cases in that area.

JIJI Press