SHENZHEN, China (Archyde.com) – After China reversed its “zero-corona” policy to contain the spread of the new coronavirus, the capital Beijing saw a sharp increase in new cases, before a wave spread across the country. is expected to spread. Candace, a 28-year-old headhunter in southern Shenzhen, is aware of the information, but he has no plans to get a booster shot. He fears the side effects of the vaccine more than the infection.
Last year, Candice got two doses of the vaccine, made by Sinovac Biotech, hoping it would help her move around. But after hearing stories of health hazards through his friends and seeing similar warnings posted on social media, Candice’s suspicions about the Chinese vaccine grew.
Candace says she “doesn’t trust it” and refuses to cooperate with local efforts to accelerate vaccination.
Academics say it’s just one example of how reluctance to vaccinate remains strong in mainland China. This is a headache for the Chinese government, which has effectively abandoned its zero-corona policy while trying to increase vaccination rates in preparation for an outbreak.
According to official announcements by Chinese authorities, the vaccination rate is over 90%. However, the proportion of adults who received the booster dose and the proportion of those aged 80 and over fell to 57.9% and 42.3%, respectively. Warning bells have been sounded that the death toll could exceed 1.5 million if measures to contain the infection, such as lockdowns (city blockades) and large-scale testing, are not taken in the future.
In September of this year, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention acknowledged that the vaccination rate among the elderly was low, and that there was a shortage of doctors engaged in vaccination in each region, a lack of medical knowledge related to vaccines, and a lack of medical knowledge when side reactions occurred. He pointed out that problems such as the inadequacy of the health insurance system cast a shadow over raising the vaccination rate.
“China is a very special case because everyone has been in a situation where everyone feels very safe for a long time,” said Stephanie Zhang Tsang, an associate professor at Hong Kong Baptist University. “We have to recognize what the effect is, and this took time in Hong Kong as well.”
However, Chinese authorities have not yet forced vaccinations. This is because there is a growing trend toward a large-scale backlash.
Meanwhile, the general public in mainland China has no access to foreign vaccines and has to rely on domestic vaccines such as Sinovac’s “Coronavac” and Sinopharm (China National Pharmaceutical Group).
Shenzhen doctor Kelly Lei says the Chinese medical community has no problem with the safety of domestic vaccines, but remains skeptical about their effectiveness compared to foreign messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines. , and talk.
“At least half of the doctors and well-educated people wanted to get an mRNA vaccine and refused the Chinese vaccine, but they soon realized they had no choice but to get the Chinese one and accepted it. The doctor complained to me that it was useless and a waste of money either way.”
Many of Lay’s friends are looking to Macau for an mRNA vaccine. However, at this time, vaccination reservations can only be made online after January 21, 2019.
However, the rapid spread of the virus within China is forcing those unable to travel to Macau and other countries to desperately cling to Chinese vaccines.
“Society has become rough in Guangzhou. People want at least some way to protect themselves,” Lei said.
(Reporter David Kirton)