COVID-19 vaccine from China to possibly be made available for public by November

A Chinese official has told in a state television that a China-developed coronavirus vaccine could be ready for the public as early as November.

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Chinese manufacturers have been optimistic about the development, with companies Sinovac Biotech and Sinopharm even putting their vaccine candidates on display at a trade fair in Beijing this month. Spokesperson of the company said that they their vaccines will be approved after phase 3 trials as early as year-end.

On September 14, a vaccine would be available to general public around November or December said chief of biosafety expert at the Chinese Center for Disease Control. Based on the phase 3 clinical results, the current development of the vaccine is very smooth.

Even Wu Guizhen, the CDC’s chief biosafety expert said that she had taken a vaccine in April and has felt good over the past few months but didn't specify which candidate she had taken.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 30 vaccine candidates are undergoing clinical trials around the world. Of the 9 to have reached the final, phase three, stage, 5 were developed in China. Some vaccines have hit recent obstacles like Pharma giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University momentarily paused clinical trials last week after a volunteer developed an unexplained illness.

Wu said she was optimistic about the vaccine candidates’ efficacy and safety.

We expect them to remain effective for one to three years … [but] the results will need to be observed for a longer time.

Some of China’s vaccine candidates have already been offered to essential workers under an emergency use program.

A Sinovac spokesman told AFP this month that tens of thousands of people had voluntarily taken its vaccine, including 90% of its employees and their families – between 2,000 and 3,000 people.

In China’s military has approved a vaccine to be used within its ranks developed by its research unit and a biotech firm in June.