Vaccine hesitancy still runs deep in mainland China, posing a growing headache for Beijing as it tries to persuade more to get vaccinated in the face of a spike in infections after the lifting of strict anti-COVID measures. | Reuters
Officially, China’s vaccination rate is above 90%, but the rate for boostered adults drops to 57.9%, and to 42.3% for people aged 80 and above, according to government data, prompting warnings that the country could see over 1.5 million deaths after lifting curbs such as lockdowns and mass testing that held most virus spread at bay.
“People need to realize what the risks are and how beneficial the vaccines are – it took time for Hong Kong citizens and the elderly to realize this as well.” While China’s medical community in general doesn’t doubt the safety of China’s vaccines, questions remain over their efficacy compared to foreign-made mRNA counterparts, said Kelly Lei, a doctor in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.In late November, the hashtag ‘Sinovac vaccine counterfeit’ surged to five million views on the Twitter-like Weibo platform, with many posts discussing lumps and hair loss allegedly caused by the locally made vaccine.
Lei said many of her friends are looking to visit the neighboring Chinese territory of Macau, where mainlanders can receive mRNA vaccines.
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