Coronavirus: Beijing tells Chinese vaccine makers to get ready for mass production
- Vice-Premier Sun Chunlan also says vaccination of high-risk groups under emergency use scheme should be finished this year
- But the experimental drugs are still going through clinical trials and developers have yet to release any data on their efficacy
Vice-Premier Sun Chunlan delivered the message on Wednesday as she visited two drug companies and the national agency that oversees vaccines in Beijing.
“We must be prepared for large-scale production and in strict accordance with quality supervision and biosafety requirements and regulations,” Sun, who is in charge of public health, was quoted by Xinhua as saying.
“Emergency use for high-risk groups such as port workers needs to be completed this year.”
Those in the high-risk category include health care workers, border control staff and essential workers such as those in delivery and transport and people who work at food markets, the National Health Commission said earlier.
An estimated 18.5 million people are in high-risk jobs, including health care workers and people in contact with overseas arrivals, and there are some 31 million essential workers, according to the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
