What’s new: Macao will kick off Covid-19 vaccinations around the Lunar New Year next week as the first batch of vaccines are set to arrive at the special administrative region by the end of this week, Macao’s health authority said.
The first batch of 100,000 doses to be delivered to Macao are inactivated vaccines produced by the China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm).
Inoculations will be offered first to medical and front-line workers as well as people planning to travel to regions with high infection risks.
What’s the context: Macao authorities said in December that the region placed orders to buy Covid-19 vaccines developed by Sinopharm, BioNTech and AstraZeneca. Macao planned to buy 400,000 doses from each developer, enough to cover its population of 630,000. Macao authorities said the vaccinations will be provided free.
The mRNA vaccine developed by BioNTech and distributed by Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group in China is expected to reach Macao in late February. The AstraZeneca shots are due for delivery in the third quarter, according to the health authority.
China approved the public use in December of the Sinopharm vaccine, which was reported to be 79.34% effective in stopping people from catching Covid-19.
Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com) and editor Bob Simison (bobsimison@caixin.com).
