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India is struggling to convince its healthcare and frontline workers to take a controversially approved locally approved COVID-19 vaccine with no late-stage efficacy data, government data showed Thursday, days before a wider deployment.
The country has the second-highest number of COVID-19 infections in the world after the United States, with cases that have recently increased as mask wear declines and states have relaxed social distancing measures.
A lack of confidence in a local vaccine could prevent India from meeting its goal of vaccinating 300 million of its 1.35 billion people by August.
India has vaccinated more than 10.5 million healthcare and frontline workers since the start of its vaccination campaign on January 16.
But only 1.2 million of them, or about 11%, took COVAXIN, Bharat Biotech’s locally developed vaccine, while the remaining 9.4 million used the vaccine licensed by AstraZeneca, according to the online platform Co -Win from the government used to monitor the vaccination campaign.
The Indian federal government has so far ordered 10 million doses of COVAXIN and 21 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. The government claims to have received at least 5.5 million doses of COVAXIN.
“This is all due to the initial discussion of how [COVAXIN] was only an experimental vaccine, how he had not completed the phase 3 trial, ”said Dr Subhash Salunkhe, who advises the state government of Maharashtra on vaccine strategy.
“These things created doubts in the minds of people, resulting in less acceptance. Availability is not an issue at this point. “
However, Indian Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Tuesday attributed the lower use of COVAXIN to the limited production capacity of Bharat Biotech compared to that of the Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine producer, which manufactures it. AstraZeneca for low and middle income. countries.
“We have found that in proportion to the quantity of vaccine available in our country, [COVAXIN’s] the levy is quite satisfactory, ”said at a press conference.
The health ministry did not respond to a request for comment on the latest figures showing that only about 12 percent of the doses ordered had been administered.
Earlier this month, Chhattisgarh, an opposition-ruled state of 32 million, told the federal government it would not use COVAXIN until its effectiveness was proven in a trial. in progress at an advanced stage.
The epidemiologist and public health experts have also criticized the approval of COVAXIN as rushed.
Bharat Biotech said efficacy data from the trial on nearly 26,000 volunteers will be available soon. The company, along with the Indian drug regulator, says the vaccine is safe and effective based on early and interim studies.
Bharat Biotech did not immediately comment on any use of its vaccine.
The government is trying to speed up vaccinations as cases have increased, especially in western Maharashtra and southern Kerala state, possibly because they have reopened trains and schools in suburbs.
Mask-wearing and social distancing have also largely disappeared, with big events like international cricket matches played in front of tens of thousands of spectators following virtually no COVID-19 rules.
India reported 16,738 new coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours, the highest daily jump in a month, data from the Ministry of Health showed Thursday, bringing the total to 11.05 million.
More than half of the new cases were in Maharashtra, India’s richest and home to its financial capital Mumbai, which on Wednesday reported a record 8,807 cases.
The death toll across the country increased by 138, also the highest in a month, bringing the total to 156,705.
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