FDA aims to finish evaluation on Sinopharm’s COVID-19 vaccine by next week

FILE PHOTO: A health worker counts used vials of Sinopharm’s coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine, at a vaccination center in Karachi, Pakistan, on February 11, 2021. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro/File Photo

MANILA, Philippines — The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday said it is targeting to complete by next week its evaluation on the emergency use authorization (EUA) application of Sinopharm for its COVID-19 vaccine.

In a taped meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte aired Thursday, FDA Director General Eric Domingo said data on the Sinopharm jab is now being reviewed by the country’s vaccine expert panel.

“This morning po ang Department of Health nakipagmeeting na po doon sa mga representatives ng Sinopharm. At the same time ang FDA naman kahapon, pinadala na rin po natin sa vaccine expert panel yung mga scientific data at clinical trial data ng bakuna na ito para kanila nang masuri,” he said.

(This morning, the Department of Health already met with representatives of Sinopharm. At the same time, the FDA already sent to the vaccine expert panel the scientific data and clinical trial data so that they may already start reviewing it.)

“We hope po by next week matapos natin ang mga evaluation natin,” he added.

(We hope that by next week, we will be able to finish our evaluation.)

The World Health Organization recently approved the vaccine developed by the China-owned drugmaker for emergency use, making it the first shot developed by a non-Western country to secure its approval.

This development on Sinopharm’s use in the country comes after the President got inoculated with the said jab even without the EUA.

After receiving backlash, Duterte apologized and asked China to recall its donated Sinopharm vaccines.

KGA