COVID-19 Vaccine To Be Ready In November – China

By Nsunjo Erica

China’s Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that COVID-19 vaccines being developed in the country may be ready for usage by the general public as early as November this year.

In an interview with the state TV on Monday, China’s CDC chief biosafety expert Guizhen Wu said Phase 3 clinical trials were proceeding smoothly and the vaccines could be ready for the general public in November or December.

According to the CDC, China has four COVID-19 vaccines in the final stage of clinical trials. At least three of those have already been offered to essential workers under an emergency use program launched in July.

Expert Guizhen Wu, who said she has experienced no abnormal symptoms in recent months after taking an experimental vaccine herself in April, did not specify which vaccines she was referring to.

A unit of state pharmaceutical giant China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) and U.S.-listed Sinovac Biotech are developing the three vaccines under the state’s emergency use program. A fourth COVID-19 vaccine being developed by CanSino Biologics was approved for use by the Chinese military in June.

China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) Concluded in July that its vaccine could be ready for public usage by the end of this year after the conclusion of Phase 3 trials.

According to the World Health Organization, there are at least more than 21 vaccines currently under trial worldwide. Every country and every lab is taking a different approach to finding the right solution to stop COVID-19 which has killed more than 925,000 people

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) also said last week that over 8,000 Boeing 747s will be needed to ship a COVID-19 vaccine around the World and that this will be the “largest transport challenge ever”

The Association added that not all planes will be suitable for delivering the COVID-19 vaccines as they need a typical temperature range of between 2 and 8C for transporting drugs.  According to the IATA, Some vaccines may require frozen temperatures which would exclude more aircraft.