First batch of Pfizer-BioNTech arrives in Hong Kong

[Hamartia Antidote]

First batch of Pfizer-BioNTech arrives in Hong Kong

More than 500,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine arrived in Hong Kong today, after a two-day delay due to export restrictions. Carried by Cathay Pacific Airways flight CX 2066, the first ba...

www.thestandard.com.hk

More than 500,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine arrived in Hong Kong today, after a two-day delay due to export restrictions.

Carried by Cathay Pacific Airways flight CX 2066, the first batches of the US-German jabs from Germany landed at Hong Kong International Airport at 10.25am.

Secretary for Civil Services Patrick Nip Tak-kuen and health secretary Sophia Chan Siu-chee were among those who greeted the plane's arrival at the apron area.

Today's 585,000 jabs were sent to the central distribution center in a Kwai Chung warehouse.

The supply will provide inoculations for around 2.4 million frontline medics and at-risk citizens who have priority in the vaccination drive launched earlier this week, offering an alternative for the Sinovac jabs.


Another batch of the Pfizer-BioNTech jabs was set to arrive in the city next week, fulfilling the government's order of 1 million.

Residents will be able to make appointments for the inoculation next week via the government's online booking system. But details were yet to be announced.

In a statement, the government said it will open seven of the 24 vaccination centers slated for BioNTech jabs first, as the vaccines must be kept at a low temperature and require proper defrost procedures.

The remaining premises will be open in phases later.

About 6,000 people received the mainland-manufactured vaccines at five venues and 18 public outpatient clinics on Friday, the first day of the mass vaccination program.

They were among the 70,000 residents who had registered for the vaccination in the coming two weeks.

The administration has ordered a total of 22.5 million doses of vaccines from three pharmaceutical manufacturers: Sinovac Biotech, AstraZeneca and Fosun Pharma, which provides vaccines jointly developed by Germany's Pfizer and US-based BioNTech.

While the first batches of Sinovac and Pfizer-BioNTech jabs were delivered in Hong Kong, the AstraZeneca vaccines will be expected in the second half this year.

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Polls shows Hong Kong residents distrust of Chinese vaccines | Taiwan News | Jan. 28, 2021 23:30

www.taiwannews.com.tw

 

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Vaccine fears are crippling China’s COVID-19 fight

The country has so far managed to administer just 2.89 doses per 100 people (or 40.5 million shots), far behind the 19.33 doses for every 100 people in the United States.

www.japantimes.co.jp

China hasn’t always been so hesitant when it comes to vaccines. Government immunization campaigns dating to the 1950s gained widespread acceptance among a mostly rural citizenry that had long been ravaged by infectious diseases. In the 1970s, investments in rural health care produced historic results: Polio incidence dropped by 77% over that decade and measles by 60%. As of 2019, China’s basic childhood vaccination rate exceeded 90%, among the highest in the world.

Amid the successes, though, there are reasons for concern. One is the corrosive effect of numerous safety scandals dating back a decade. In 2016, the government shut down an illegal vaccine manufacturing ring that had been in operation since 2011 and had sold as many as 2 million improperly stored doses. A survey conducted two months after the incident found that 16% of parents were not vaccinating their children due to it.

Two years later, Changsheng Bio-technology Co., a vaccine manufacturer, was accused of faking data on its rabies vaccine and selling ineffective childhood diphtheria, tetanus and whooping-cough shots. Fines and prison sentences were imposed, but the damage was lasting. A survey following the scandal found that about 70% of respondents lacked confidence in vaccinations, and more than half were dissatisfied with the government’s response.

For months, China has promoted its COVID-19 vaccine development program as proof that its pharmaceutical industry has reached world-class standards. But there’s little evidence that its citizens are primed to agree. Although studies show that most parents still elect to vaccinate their children with the government-recommended (free) vaccines, for example, a majority of those same parents report serious concerns about side-effects (74%), safety (64%), and effectiveness (52%).