A city in eastern China is offering an experimental coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccine outside of clinical trials for about $ 60 to high-risk groups under an emergency inoculation program, officials said, including when experts raised concerns about the massive launch of an ace-yet untested vaccine.
Beijing-based Sinovac Biotech’s vaccine, called CoronaVac, is offered in Jiaxing City to caregivers, especially epidemic prevention workers, public service personnel, and port inspectors, and will eventually be offered to citizens. common, state media reported. Friday, citing officials.
“The vaccine, developed by the Chinese company Sinovac Biotech, will be provided to people between the ages of 18 and 59 at a price of 400 yuan ($ 59.5) for two injections,” said the Jiaxing Center for the Control and Prevention of Diseases (CDC), adding that the vaccine has not been “officially approved for marketing” and is only approved for “urgent needs.”
However, the Jiaxing CDC did not specify what constituted “urgent needs.”
Authorities also did not say how many people in the city will receive the vaccine, which comes in two doses 14 to 28 days apart.
The Sinovac vaccine is in late-stage trials in Brazil, Indonesia and Turkey, and the company has said an interim analysis of data from the phase 3 trial could arrive in early November, Reuters news agency reported.
In late June, the China National Health Commission (CNH), under China’s Vaccine Management Law, had allowed emergency vaccines to be used in people who are at high risk of contracting the deadly virus, including medical workers, front-line pandemic control workers and customs. workers: a measure considered controversial by experts, since the vaccines are still in a testing stage. Since July, China has administered such vaccines to hundreds of thousands of people under the program.
On September 25, a senior Chinese health official said that Beijing had obtained the “understanding and support” of the World Health Organization (WHO) before starting the emergency use program. In a statement emailed to HT the next day, the WHO said China’s decision to launch the program was a national authorization. “These are issued at the discretion of countries and are not subject to WHO approval,” he said.
As of the end of September, 11 Chinese Covid-19 vaccines had entered clinical trials, with four in phase 3 clinical trials.
Last week, China announced that it will join COVAX, an international initiative aimed at ensuring equitable global access to Covid-19 vaccines, becoming the largest economy supporting the initiative to date.
The number of daily Covid-19 cases in mainland China has fallen dramatically from the peaks seen in February.
The total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in mainland China is more than 85,500, while the death toll was unchanged at 4,634.
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