After being heavily criticized for its huge failure in the Covid vaccination drive, China has now approved the use of US-made Pfizer drug to treat its millions of coronavirus patents. According to a CNN report, Beijing will start distributing Pfizer Covid-19 drug Paxlovid as cases flare up following the end of the controversial zero Covid policy.
Millions of people have been infected as China witnesses a staggering breakout of the conronavirus infection despite nearly three years of lockdowns and strict implementation of the restrictive policies.
Community doctors in Beijing will be allowed to administer the Pfizer drug to Covid-19 patients soon, according to the state-run China News Service. "We have received the notice from officials, but it is not clear when the drugs will arrive," the outlet reported, citing community health workers center in Beijing's Xicheng district.
Why Paxlovid?
China has been extremely reluctant in approving foreign vaccines and medicines as it tried to contain the raging coronavirus infection. With cases registering an explosive rise, Chian has approved the use of Paxlovid for use in the treatment.
Paxlovid, an oral antiviral medication, is made up of two generic pills that can be used in the treatment of people with higher risks from Covid-19. According to Health News, patients who take Paxlovid within three days of infection have an 89% lower chance of death or need hospitalization. As of now, Paxlovid is the only foreign medicine the Chinese regulators have approved for the treatment.
Beijing earlier faced heavy criticism after its indigenously developed Covid-19 vaccines failed to contain the virus spread in the last two years. People vaccinated with the China-manufactured vaccines turned out to be highly ineffective as vaccinated people became more prone to infections.
Despite the failure of its vaccines, China had stubbornly refused to accept foreign vaccines. Beijing's shortcoming on the vaccine front stood out starkly in comparison with the way the Indian government successfully rolled out home-developed vaccines to prevent big surges in virus infection.
According to a World Health Organisation analysis, while the effectiveness of Indian vaccines was 99.30 percent, the Chinese vaccines' effectiveness was less than 80 percent. Another study by the University of Hong Kong estimated that the Chinese vaccines' effectiveness was lower, at just 60 percent.
