Name: Effectiveness of Chinese vaccines ‘not high’ and needs improvement, top health official says
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Effectiveness of Chinese vaccines ‘not high’ and needs improvement, top health official says

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This article was published more than&nbsp;1 year agoCommentGift ShareTAIPEI, Taiwan — The head of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention conceded that the efficacy of Chinese coronavirus vaccines is "not high" and that they may require improvements, marking a rare admission from a government that has staked its international credibility on its doses.The comments on Saturday from George Gao come after the government has already distributed , even though the rollout has been dogged by questions over why Chinese pharmaceutical firms have not released detailed .China has struck deals to supply many of its allies and economic partners in the developing world and boasted that world leaders — including in Indonesia, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates — have taken the shots.AdvertisementThere have been signs that some countries remain skeptical: The UAE recently experimented with administering vaccine, instead of two, over reports of low numbers of antibodies produced in some people, while Singapore has Sinovac shots.China is “formally considering” options to change its vaccines to “solve the problem that the efficacy of the existing vaccines is not high,” Gao said at a conference in Chengdu.Gao added that one possibility was to adjust the dosage or increase the number of doses. He said another option was to mix vaccines that are made with different technologies, in an apparent admission that China needs to develop messenger RNA vaccines using the revolutionary genetic technology that Western countries have harnessed.Gao’s remarks, which appeared inadvertent and quickly spread through Chinese social media on Saturday before being mostly censored, marked a departure from the rosy assessments of Chinese-made vaccines by the government. By Sunday, Internet users were intentionally misspelling words in their posts while discussing Gao’s comments to keep them from being removed.AdvertisementSinopharm and Sinovac use a conventional method of producing vaccines that contains inactivated viruses, while other countries’ offerings, including those by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, rely on a new technique that uses messenger RNA (mRNA) to stimulate an immune response.The gap in efficacy between mRNA and inactivated vaccines has been observed broadly and among other countries’ shots, too. The overall efficacy of Johnson &amp; Johnson’s one-shot vaccine is about 66 percent, compared with roughly 95 percent for the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna shots.Chinese pharmaceutical companies are racing to catch up with the technology. Several Chinese companies are beginning trials, and executives say there could be a Chinese mRNA vaccine as early as this year.The admission by the head of the Chinese CDC undercut other arms of the government, including its propaganda organs and diplomats, who have spent months touting Chinese vaccines as part of a soft power push while aggressively sowing doubt about Western alternatives by questioning the efficacy and safety of mRNA technology.AdvertisementOn Sunday, the Global Times, a state-run newspaper that has led the way in pushing theories about the coronavirus originating from outside China, hit back at the “hyped up” reports of Gao’s comments.It quoted Gao as saying that his comments had been misunderstood and that he was speaking in general terms about how scientists, internationally, should improve their vaccine development.“I was struck by what Gao said, not because it is significantly different from what we have already known but because it deviates from the official narrative on the effectiveness of Chinese and Western vaccines,” said Yanzhong Huang, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. “I think he was trying to push for the approval of the use of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines in China and/or the acceleration of the development of China’s own mRNA vaccines.”AdvertisementEven before Gao’s comments, there had been discussion about whether the Chinese companies should tweak their formulations or vaccination regimen. Executives at Sinopharm, the state pharmaceutical giant, said in March that they were assessing whether to include a third booster shot as part of their vaccine’s standard administering procedure. The company said last week that it would begin clinical tests on a third vaccine.More than 60 countries have approved at least one of China’s vaccines for use. They have been in high demand, especially among lower-income countries, which have not been able to acquire the other vaccines.Sinopharm has reported a 79&nbsp;percent efficacy rate for its vaccine — without releasing any data — while trials for Sinovac in Brazil and Turkey have shown an efficacy rate of just 50&nbsp;percent and more than 80&nbsp;percent, respectively.AdvertisementYet even though both drugmakers carried out mass clinical trials earlier than most other pharmaceutical companies last year, the data still has not been published in a peer-reviewed journal.Foreigners traveling to China, however, have been encouraged to use these Chinese-made vaccines to enjoy into the country.In Turkey, where the Sinovac is in wide use, there has been little concern about the effectiveness of the vaccine. Rather, the worry has been that China won’t be able to deliver the promised 100&nbsp;million doses amid delays in shipments.Brazil, Egypt and other nations also have been clamoring for more doses as China has throttled back exports in the face of domestic demand even as cases have been surging worldwide.Paul Schemm in Dubai contributed to this report.The latest: , a strategic shift that puts more of the onus on individuals, rather than on schools, businesses and other institutions, to limit viral spread.Variants: BA.5 is the most recent omicron subvariant, and it’s quickly become the dominant strain in the U.S. , and why vaccines may only offer limited protection.Vaccines: For people under 50, while the Biden administration works to roll out shots . Immunizations for became available this summer. Here’s by your prior infections and booster history.Guidance: CDC guidelines have been confusing — if you get covid, here’s . We’ve also created .Where do things stand? See the latest coronavirus numbers and . The is behind much of the recent spread.For the latest news, . CommentsGift ArticleTOP STORIESGoing GlobalEssential reporting and analysis from correspondents around the world.Try a different topic or to save your preferences

This article was published more than&nbsp;1 year agoCommentGift ShareTAIPEI, Taiwan — The head of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention conceded that the efficacy of Chinese coronavirus vaccines is "not high" and that they may require improvements, marking a rare admission from a government that has staked its international credibility on its doses.The comments on Saturday from George Gao come after the government has already distributed , even though the rollout has been dogged by questions over why Chinese pharmaceutical firms have not released detailed .China has struck...

Effectiveness of Chinese vaccines ‘not high’ and needs improvement, top health official says

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