China approves second domestic COVID-19 vaccine for general public use

China has given approval for the domestic-made Sinovac coronavirus vaccine. The National Medical Products Administration announced in a statement that the regulators gave conditional approval for Sinovac Biotech Ltd’s shot, Coronvac, on Friday. This vaccine has been used in at least 10 other countries and is being administered to people in at least five other countries. 

China gave an emergency approval for the shot in the month of July. Earlier, experts said that the country has been slow with pushing the trial data. China has administered more than 10 million doses of its state-owned firm Sinopharm which also has not published phase 3 trial data, as per a DD News report. 

Read: China's SinoVac Efficacy Remains Inconsistent, COVID-19 Cases Surge In The Country

Hong Kong delays SinoVac distribution 

As per DD News report, Hong Kong has announced that it may delay the distribution of the Sinovac’s Covid-19 vaccine because of a lack of trial data, raising transparency concerns over a vaccine Beijing wants to sell throughout the developing world, however, China has started exporting its vaccines, as most countries are likely to need more than one type of vaccine to meet the demand. The exports come even as China battles its own flare-up in infections, which has put nearly 30 million people in lockdown.

Read: China Gives Approval For Broader Use Of Sinovac Vaccine

On January 13, Turkish authorities gave the go-ahead for the emergency use of the Sinovac, paving the way for the rollout of Turkey’s vaccination program starting with health care workers and other high-risk groups. The same day, the vaccine found to be far less effective than vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, according to a Brazilian government statement that raised questions about the lack of transparency of Chinese-made vaccines.

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(Image Credits: AP)