The Governor of Sao Paulo presenting the Sinovac vaccine, July 21, 2020. – Fotoarena / Sipa USA / SIPA
The Chinese vaccine takes a new step. The World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday gave its emergency approval for the Chinese vaccine against the coronavirus, Sinovac, the instance announced in a press release.
The WHO vaccine expert committee has recommended this vaccine, which requires two doses at two to four week intervals for people 18 years of age and older.
“The world is in desperate need of many anti-Covid 19 vaccines”
It is the second Chinese vaccine to thus obtain the green light from the WHO, which makes it possible to integrate it into the international Covax system for the distribution of anti-Covid sera, particularly in disadvantaged countries. “The world is in desperate need of many Covid 19 vaccines to cope with the huge inequalities around the world,” said Dr Mariangela Simao, WHO Assistant Director-General for Access to Medicines and Commodities health.
The WHO had already approved the Sinopharm, manufactured in Beijing, on May 7. The effectiveness of Sinovac is 57% to prevent symptomatic Covid cases but 100% to avoid the most serious cases and hospitalizations, on the populations studied, specifies the WHO. Effectiveness for those over 60 years of age could not be assessed.
Sinovac vaccine used in 22 countries
This serum – of the inactivated vaccine type – “is easy to store which makes it easy to manage and particularly suitable for countries with few resources” underlines the agency. The organization has also already given the green light to Moderna’s vaccine, to that of Pfizer-BioNTech, to the two AstraZeneca serums manufactured in India and South Korea (WHO counts this for two approvals even if the product is identical) and that of Johnson & Johnson, called Janssen.
This procedure helps countries that do not have the means to determine the efficacy and safety of a drug on their own to gain faster access to therapies. And it will allow the Covax system, set up by the WHO with partners (the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization – Gavi – and the Coalition for Innovations in Epidemic Preparedness) to distribute, in particular, vaccines against Covid in disadvantaged nations, to be able to consider having additional vaccines. Sinovac is already in use in 22 countries and territories. Besides China, it is used in Tunisia, Chile, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, Thailand and Turkey.