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Turkey inks contract for 50 million doses of Chinese vaccine
ANKARA
Turkey has signed a contract to buy 50 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from China’s Sinovac Biotech, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said.
Turkey has a deal for 50 million doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine that will be delivered in December, January, and February, according to the minister.
“If all goes well, we plan to start vaccinating at-risk groups gradually, starting with our healthcare personnel,” he said, adding that people will be vaccinated for free.
At least 10 million doses of the Chinese vaccine will be delivered in December, but the target is to receive some 20 million doses and another 20 million doses are scheduled for January and at least 10 million doses will be received in February, Koca detailed.
Speaking in Ankara after the Health Ministry’s Science Board meeting on Nov. 25, Koca reiterated that Turkey is also in talks with other vaccine developers, including Russia.
“The important thing here for us to start using vaccines which are known to be effective and reliable ... I think the vaccination calendar could start on Dec. 11,” he said.
The minister earlier this month unveiled that Ankara was hoping to buy doses of Pfizer and BioNTech’s vaccine.
If the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine obtains its license, Turkey may get one million doses of the vaccine by the end of the year. We are in talks to gradually go up to 25 million within a year starting from January, Koca said at that time.
At the press meeting on Nov. 25, the minister reminded that Turkey is carrying out studies to develop its own vaccines.
Works are underway for 16 potential vaccines and one of those candidate jabs has already been administered to 44 volunteers, Koca noted.
“No serious side effects have been reported. The phase three trials of this potential injection will take place in April the latest and the locally-developed vaccine could be launched for use that month,” he said.
www.hurriyetdailynews.com
Turkey announces vaccination plan for Chinese CoronaVac
FILE - In this Oct. 9, 2020 file photo, a health worker administers the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine currently on phase III clinical trials to Cem Gun, an Emergency Medicine Physician, at the Acibadem Hospital in Istanbul, Friday, Oct. 9, 2020. Turkish health minister Fahrettin Koca, who had previously announced an agreement with Chinese biopharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech for 50 million doses of CoronaVac, said in a statement late Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2020, that the first shipment of the inactivated vaccine will arrive in Turkey after Dec. 11. (Emrah Gurel, file/Associated Press)
By Zeynep Bilginsoy | AP
Dec. 3, 2020 at 4:00 a.m. EST
ISTANBUL — Turkey’s health minister has announced a plan to start using an experimental Chinese COVID-19 vaccine later this month amid a surge in infections and deaths.
Fahrettin Koca had previously announced an agreement with China’s Sinovac Biotech for 50 million doses of CoronaVac, which is currently in late stage trials. Koca said in a statement late Wednesday that the first shipment of the vaccine will arrive in Turkey after Dec. 11.
The minister said early use authorization would be granted after Turkish labs confirm the shots are safe and after assessment of initial results from the latest trials.
“If developments continue positively as we expect, Turkey would be among the first countries in the world to begin vaccinations in the early phase,” Koca said.
In November, The Lancet published a study about the efficacy of Sinovac’s vaccine candidate based on initial clinical trials. The study said the efficacy was determined to be moderate, and that the vaccine produced lower levels of antibodies than those that have been found in recovered COVID-19 patients.
“The protective efficacy of CoronaVac remains to be determined,” the study said.
Candidates from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna have said that they have more than 90% efficacy rates. The U.K.’s AstraZeneca have an efficacy rate of 70-90%, again based on limited clinical trials.
Vaccination efforts would be rolled out in four stages, the minister said. The first group includes health care workers, citizens above age 65, and people living in homes for the elderly, disabled or other protective care homes.
Next would be essential workers and people above 50 with at least one chronic disease. Third, people younger than 50 with at least one chronic illness, young adults and other workers would be vaccinated. The fourth and final phase would be for the rest of the population.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday the vaccine would be administered free of charge. Other COVID-19 vaccines would be sold at pharmacies, according to the health minister.
“We will take delivery of at least 10 million doses of the vaccine in December and likely 20 million. Another 20 million doses in January and 10 million in February,” Koca said earlier this week. Turkey’s population is more than 83 million.
The CoronaVac, which is a so-called inactivated vaccine, will be delivered in two doses per person.
Inactivated vaccines are made by growing the whole virus in a lab and then killing it. Safely brewing and then killing the virus can take longer than newer technologies. But inactivated vaccines give the body a sneak peek at the germ itself rather than just the single spike protein, which mediates the entry of the coronavirus.
Koca had previously announced an agreement for 1 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to be delivered in December. He said Wednesday that negotiations were ongoing for more vaccines that introduce a so-called messenger RNA, or mRNA, sequence coded for a disease specific antigen, which prompts the body to have an immune response.
Turkey was included in the trial phases of both vaccines and is also developing a local vaccine. Vaccine trials usually take years but have been drastically sped-up in wake of the global pandemic.
Turkey has reported record fatalities for 10 consecutive days, with 193 new deaths Wednesday, bringing the total death toll in the country to 14,129.
The daily number of infections has also hit a record high of 31,923, as Turkey resumed reporting all positive cases last week after four months of only releasing the numbers of symptomatic patients. The new daily infection numbers put Turkey among the worst-hit in the world.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Today’s Headlines
The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning.
ANKARA
Turkey has signed a contract to buy 50 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from China’s Sinovac Biotech, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said.
Turkey has a deal for 50 million doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine that will be delivered in December, January, and February, according to the minister.
“If all goes well, we plan to start vaccinating at-risk groups gradually, starting with our healthcare personnel,” he said, adding that people will be vaccinated for free.
At least 10 million doses of the Chinese vaccine will be delivered in December, but the target is to receive some 20 million doses and another 20 million doses are scheduled for January and at least 10 million doses will be received in February, Koca detailed.
Speaking in Ankara after the Health Ministry’s Science Board meeting on Nov. 25, Koca reiterated that Turkey is also in talks with other vaccine developers, including Russia.
“The important thing here for us to start using vaccines which are known to be effective and reliable ... I think the vaccination calendar could start on Dec. 11,” he said.
The minister earlier this month unveiled that Ankara was hoping to buy doses of Pfizer and BioNTech’s vaccine.
If the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine obtains its license, Turkey may get one million doses of the vaccine by the end of the year. We are in talks to gradually go up to 25 million within a year starting from January, Koca said at that time.
At the press meeting on Nov. 25, the minister reminded that Turkey is carrying out studies to develop its own vaccines.
Works are underway for 16 potential vaccines and one of those candidate jabs has already been administered to 44 volunteers, Koca noted.
“No serious side effects have been reported. The phase three trials of this potential injection will take place in April the latest and the locally-developed vaccine could be launched for use that month,” he said.
Turkey inks contract for 50 million doses of Chinese vaccine - Türkiye News
Turkey has signed a contract to buy 50 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from China’s Sinovac Biotech, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said.
FILE - In this Oct. 9, 2020 file photo, a health worker administers the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine currently on phase III clinical trials to Cem Gun, an Emergency Medicine Physician, at the Acibadem Hospital in Istanbul, Friday, Oct. 9, 2020. Turkish health minister Fahrettin Koca, who had previously announced an agreement with Chinese biopharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech for 50 million doses of CoronaVac, said in a statement late Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2020, that the first shipment of the inactivated vaccine will arrive in Turkey after Dec. 11. (Emrah Gurel, file/Associated Press)
By Zeynep Bilginsoy | AP
Dec. 3, 2020 at 4:00 a.m. EST
ISTANBUL — Turkey’s health minister has announced a plan to start using an experimental Chinese COVID-19 vaccine later this month amid a surge in infections and deaths.
Fahrettin Koca had previously announced an agreement with China’s Sinovac Biotech for 50 million doses of CoronaVac, which is currently in late stage trials. Koca said in a statement late Wednesday that the first shipment of the vaccine will arrive in Turkey after Dec. 11.
The minister said early use authorization would be granted after Turkish labs confirm the shots are safe and after assessment of initial results from the latest trials.
“If developments continue positively as we expect, Turkey would be among the first countries in the world to begin vaccinations in the early phase,” Koca said.
In November, The Lancet published a study about the efficacy of Sinovac’s vaccine candidate based on initial clinical trials. The study said the efficacy was determined to be moderate, and that the vaccine produced lower levels of antibodies than those that have been found in recovered COVID-19 patients.
“The protective efficacy of CoronaVac remains to be determined,” the study said.
Candidates from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna have said that they have more than 90% efficacy rates. The U.K.’s AstraZeneca have an efficacy rate of 70-90%, again based on limited clinical trials.
Vaccination efforts would be rolled out in four stages, the minister said. The first group includes health care workers, citizens above age 65, and people living in homes for the elderly, disabled or other protective care homes.
Next would be essential workers and people above 50 with at least one chronic disease. Third, people younger than 50 with at least one chronic illness, young adults and other workers would be vaccinated. The fourth and final phase would be for the rest of the population.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday the vaccine would be administered free of charge. Other COVID-19 vaccines would be sold at pharmacies, according to the health minister.
“We will take delivery of at least 10 million doses of the vaccine in December and likely 20 million. Another 20 million doses in January and 10 million in February,” Koca said earlier this week. Turkey’s population is more than 83 million.
The CoronaVac, which is a so-called inactivated vaccine, will be delivered in two doses per person.
Inactivated vaccines are made by growing the whole virus in a lab and then killing it. Safely brewing and then killing the virus can take longer than newer technologies. But inactivated vaccines give the body a sneak peek at the germ itself rather than just the single spike protein, which mediates the entry of the coronavirus.
Koca had previously announced an agreement for 1 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to be delivered in December. He said Wednesday that negotiations were ongoing for more vaccines that introduce a so-called messenger RNA, or mRNA, sequence coded for a disease specific antigen, which prompts the body to have an immune response.
Turkey was included in the trial phases of both vaccines and is also developing a local vaccine. Vaccine trials usually take years but have been drastically sped-up in wake of the global pandemic.
Turkey has reported record fatalities for 10 consecutive days, with 193 new deaths Wednesday, bringing the total death toll in the country to 14,129.
The daily number of infections has also hit a record high of 31,923, as Turkey resumed reporting all positive cases last week after four months of only releasing the numbers of symptomatic patients. The new daily infection numbers put Turkey among the worst-hit in the world.
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Today’s Headlines
The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning.
