3 firms express intent to apply for EUA of Sinopharm’s COVID-19 vax — FDA

FILE PHOTO: A nurse holds a syringe containing a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine made by the Beijing Institute of Biological Products, a unit of Sinopharm subsidiary China National Biotec Group (CNBG), at a vaccination center during a government-organized visit, in Beijing, China, April 15, 2021. REUTERS/Thomas Peter

MANILA, Philippines — Three companies have so far expressed intention to apply for an emergency use authorization (EUA) of Sinopharm’s COVID-19 vaccine, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said Thursday.

“There are actually already three companies that already wrote us saying they are going to apply for an EUA from Sinopharm, all of them claiming to be the local counterpart of Sinopharm,” FDA Director-General Eric Domingo said in an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel.

Previously, there were only two firms that have expressed intent to apply for an EUA of the China-made vaccine.

According to Domingo, the three companies have yet to submit the documents that are required by the FDA for the EUA application.

Domingo said one of the companies told the FDA that they are still securing documents from China.

“So technically wala talagang application (there is no application yet). May mga sumusulat lang (There are only companies that wrote to us) intending to apply but none of them have submitted any requirements so as of this time there is nothing for us to evaluate,” Domingo said.

President Rodrigo Duterte received on Monday his first shot of the Sinopharm vaccine. Malacañang earlier said the dose used on Duterte was covered by the compassionate special permit issued to the Presidential Security Group Hospital for the Sinopharm shots.

Duterte later apologized on Wednesday for getting inoculated with Sinopharm’s vaccine but insisted that it was legal. He also said that he had asked Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian to stop sending that brand of COVID-19 vaccine to the country and to just send Sinovac vaccine doses.

/MUF