Before the Chinese New Year mass travel season in February, a lot of people lined up in Beijing on Monday to obtain a Covid-19 vaccine as China races to inoculate millions.
In the last couple of days, more than 73,000 individuals in the Chinese capital have obtained the first dose of the drug, state media announced Sunday, including health staff and bus drivers.
A vaccine applicant made by the Chinese pharma giant Sinopharm, which the company said had a 79 percent efficacy rate, was granted “conditional” approval by health officials on New Year’s Eve.
After being told to fill in electronic forms about their health status and any allergies at an outside entrance, an AFP journalist saw individuals being bused into a temporary vaccine center in a central park.
Two layers of protective face masks were worn by some.
A man named Gu, a 30-year-old catering employee told AFP that his boss had scheduled him a vaccine consultation at the center and that he needed the vaccine “for peace of mind.”
“I believe any adverse effects will be controllable,” he told.
A video clip from national broadcaster CCTV showed lines around local hospitals and community health centers as individuals waited before having the jab to read consent forms and have their temperature readings taken.
Situation In Beijing:
Health authorities in Beijing said that among the places used for the vaccine campaign were gyms and empty warehouses. In the take to the Chinese New Year in mid-February, China is projected to vaccinate millions of people this season.
Around 4.5 million shots of largely unproven emergency vaccines have already been distributed by Beijing this year—mostly to healthcare professionals and other government workers bound for overseas jobs, according to officials.
China, however, is now preparing a phased push of the vaccine, beginning with main groups deemed to be at increased risk of exposure to the infection, namely port and food logistics staff and individuals planning to return to study abroad.
China, where the coronavirus first appeared late in 2019, has broadly rooted out the virus within its borders, imposing rapid local lockdowns and mass testing when cases occur.
But after a recent string of minor local outbreaks, including a number of instances in Beijing, the country has stepped up testing and movement controls.
Additionally, the country is working on finding the origin of the disease outbreak, and WHO is in full support in the task. Many are saying that it might come into existence from some imported frozen food item while some are still waiting for the correct reason to come into the picture.
