Hospitals in China are overflowing with Covid patients after the country loosened quarantine rules.
The government says it will now step up its vaccination program after criticism that it had vaccinated relatively few people so far. To understand:
What has changed in China’s new covid rules?
After mass protests over its controversial “covid zero” policy, China stopped mass testing in cities and areas with outbreaks.
People can now stay at home if they have mild covid symptoms instead of being sent to a quarantine centre.
Officially, China has experienced a relatively low number of covid cases and few deaths.
With the end of the batch testing program, Chinese authorities no longer have reliable data on the number of covid infections.
But there are reports that hospitals are overflowing with patients. And the World Health Organization (WHO) requested specific data on the severity of the disease and hospitalizations in the country.
Image: Reuters
How many people have been vaccinated in China?
Official figures for November show that Chinese health officials have vaccinated 40% of people over the age of 80 with two doses of the vaccine and a booster.
People in this age group are most vulnerable to the virus.
The figure represents a huge improvement over China’s previous performance.
As of April 2022, less than 50% of people aged 70-79 had received two vaccines and a booster dose, compared to less than 20% for those aged 80+.
China has now set a target for 90% of the population over 80 to receive the first two or both vaccines plus a booster by the end of January.
However, vaccination alone may not be enough to stop the increase in covid cases.
Experts believe that because the Chinese population is so constrained, many people do not acquire “hybrid immunity,” that is, they do not receive additional protection from vaccination and exposure to the live virus.
Why are so few elderly people vaccinated in China?
When the Chinese government began distributing vaccines in late 2020, it prioritized the working-age population. He hasn’t tested his vaccines on many seniors and said he can’t tell them if they’re safe for that age group.
Professor Liang Wannian, head of China’s Covid expert panel, says this has made some people reluctant to get vaccinated.
“Many seniors have other illnesses,” he says. “They think it wouldn’t be safe to get vaccinated.”
Image: Getty Images
Are Chinese vaccines effective?
China has only administered vaccines made in its own country: Coronavac and Sinopharm, produced by a company called Sinovac.
Both use parts of a dead coronavirus to expose the body to COVID and stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies against the virus.
A study in the USA suggests that Sinovac, the more widely used of the two, is only 66% effective in protecting against Covid infection and 86.3% in preventing death.
Both Sinovac and Sinopharm are less effective than the mRNA vaccines produced by Pfizer and Moderna.
These train the immune system to attack the spike protein in the virus – the part of the virus that infects cells in the body. They provide 90% protection against serious illness or death.
Which countries use Chinese vaccines?
Since the beginning of the pandemic, 64 more countries have used Sinopharm and 34 more countries have used Sinovac.
It has been especially popular in Asian countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, and the Philippines.
While Chinese vaccines can be stored in the refrigerator at 2 to 8°C, Moderna’s mRNA vaccine needs to be stored at -20°C and Pfizer’s at -70°C.
Many developing countries use vaccines from China as they do not have facilities to store large quantities of vaccines at such low temperatures.
Why didn’t China use Western vaccines against Covid?
China claims to produce about half of the world’s stock of all Covid vaccines.
So far, the government has denied approval of Western mRNA vaccines for home use. Germany has sent doses of the Pfizer vaccine to China, but the vaccines will only be administered to foreign nationals.
China is believed to be developing its own mRNA vaccine, but it is unknown when it will be ready.
The country reportedly asked American company Moderna to provide the technology behind the mRNA vaccine, but the company refused to do so.
– This text was published at https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/internacional-64076357.
source: Noticias
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.