State Council's inter-agency task force briefing on COVID-19 vaccine
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E-mail China.org.cn, January 3, 2021
Hu Kaihong:
Thank you, Mr. Xu. Next, let's give the floor to Mr. Zeng.
Zeng Yixin:
Friends from the media, since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the vaccine R&D working group has simultaneously worked on five technological approaches under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee and the unified deployment of the State Council's inter-agency task force. Relevant vaccine developing companies, scientific research facilities, medical institutes, epidemic control centers, research centers for animal testing, and vaccine regulatory agencies have prioritized people's well-being and leveraged the strength of China's own system. We have made joint efforts and put forward innovative working models, greatly contributing to the COVID-19 vaccine R&D.
The world's first inactivated vaccine, developed by China, was approved for phase-1 and phase-2 clinical trials on April 2. On June 23, China was also the first to carry out phase-3 clinical trials. Then, on June 24, China approved the emergency use of vaccines with strict procedures and in accordance with laws. Since July, many of China's vaccines have been undergoing phase-3 clinical trials outside China. And today, China has granted conditional marketing authorization for our first self-developed COVID-19 vaccine. China has always held a leading position in regard to vaccine R&D in the world. We have also prioritized the safety and efficacy of vaccines during the R&D process.
As a pandemic unseen in a century, COVID-19 still poses a serious challenge to the world. Despite the strategic achievements in controlling the virus in China, we continue to face enormous pressure in guarding against imported cases and preventing a resurgence of the outbreak at home. As you know, we have seen newly reported sporadic cases in China. To protect the high-risk population, since June, starting from a small range of people and under the principle of volunteer participation and informed consent, we have prudently conducted emergency vaccination, while closely monitoring any adverse effects and preparing for emergency treatment. By the end of November, we had administered more than 1.5 million doses, involving approximately 60,000 recipients who then travelled abroad to work in high-risk areas. There have been no reports of serious infection among them. This has proven that the vaccine is both safe and effective.
As we know, the winter and spring are seasons of frequent infectious disease transmission. To guard against new COVID-19 outbreaks and protect the high-risk population, we have started vaccination of key groups of people working in cold-chain logistics, customs, medical services, public transportation systems, as well as agricultural products and sea food markets. We formally started COVID-19 vaccinations among key groups in China on Dec. 15. In the past 15 days, we have administered over 3 million doses of vaccines. During the vaccination process, we have established mechanisms to build standardized vaccination facilities, provide appropriate training for medical workers, screen recipients' overall health, closely monitor adverse effects, and provide emergency treatment and medical consultations for recipients suffering from serious effects. Altogether, the 4.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines given to recipients have proven that our vaccine is safe.
Of course, we have seen some adverse effects among recipients. The incidence is similar to other inactivated vaccines, like injection site pain and swelling. Less than 0.1% recipients have had mild fever, and about two in a million showed allergic reactions and other relatively serious adverse effects. Those people have all been taken good care of, with timely treatment. So, it's important to ask the recipients if they have any serious allergies before vaccination and prepare for sufficient medical services in case of any problems during the vaccination process. Moreover, we should also prepare for coincidental events and psychogenic responses, namely adverse effects caused by psychological factors like nervousness. Coincidental events are adverse effects that are correlated with some certain diseases or accidents. Therefore, we need to remain on high alert during the vaccination process and offer timely professional treatment where necessary.
In the next step, as the vaccine has been granted conditional marketing authorization and as production capacity increases, we will comprehensively vaccinate the high-risk population like senior citizens and people with underlying conditions, and then the general public in an orderly manner. At present, the immunization expert advisory committee has established a unified plan that will fully cover the population who need to be vaccinated so as to establish a strong shield gradually to stop the spread of coronavirus and bring it under total control. Thank you.
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