China’s vaccination system has been tainted by corruption, weak regulations and staff shortages
Regulators are in an uphill battle against corruption and have few penalties or staff to ensure safety in the pharmaceutical industry
Corruption, poor deterrence and staffing shortages have contributed to China’s latest vaccine scare, just a decade after public confidence in food and drug safety was severely undermined by the fatal melamine-tainted milk scandal.
The country’s vaccination system has made strides in recent decades, with the regulatory system gaining the World Health Organisation’s approval and four of its vaccines in pre-qualification for distribution with United Nations agencies in other countries. And more than 99 per cent of the vaccine samples tested by the Chinese drug regulator were up to standard.
But parents are again on edge about the safety of the food it produces and the pharmaceuticals it uses as a fresh vaccine scandal reveals that more than 360,000 children were administered compulsory but substandard DPT vaccines against diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus.
Industry insiders said the failures were the result of drug companies not complying with production standards, adding that tougher inspection and punishment regimens were needed.
One former employee of the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control, the testing agency under the food and drug regulator, said that the official watchdogs did not have enough staff to ensure drugs were up to standard and that the industry relied on the pharmaceutical companies for compliance.