Chinese Vaccine CoronaVac to be Guarded by São Paulo State Police Riot Squad
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The government of São Paulo employed a specialized State Police force, the 2nd Riot Squad, to guard the CoronaVac vaccine, whose first 120,000 doses arrived on Thursday, November 19th, from China.
A target of criticism from President Jair Bolsonaro and right-wing radical groups, the vaccine against Covid-19 will be placed under a rigorous security scheme.
There is the concern of potential gang action, similar to when hospital supplies were stolen in the first semester. The CoronaVac needs to be stored inside common refrigerators, differently from other vaccines under development.
The vaccine is developed by the Chinese Sinovac laboratory in partnership with the Butantan Institute, which has signed a contract for technology transfer and should also produce millions of doses locally.
The Butantan Institute director Dimas Covas expects that by May 100 million doses will be ready to be administered to Brazilians. However, the vaccine still needs to have its efficacy confirmed and to be regulated by the ANVISA (National Health Surveillance Agency).
Source: Veja
More: Brazil news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error
Read More from The Rio Times