World Health Organization’s Director of Immunization praised China Friday to make quick progress on vaccination of older people COVID-19 shots and boosters since the anti-virus controls were lifted last month.
China’s population of 1.4 billion has been largely shielded from the disease since it emerged in the city of Wuhan in late 2019.
“China is making huge progress and efforts to reach every older adult with both the primary dose and booster dose,” WHO’s Kate O’Brien told a Geneva media briefing.
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However, he added that some elderly people found it “difficult” to understand the changes to its vaccination policy because they had previously been advised not to get protected.
At the same briefing, O’Brien said the UN health agency plans to work on efforts to address missed routine vaccinations for malaria and other diseases in 2023. Since the pandemic began, more than 50 million children have missed out on routine immunizations. Vaccination, he added.
Asked if he has concerns about vaccinations for other diseases in China due to high COVID cases, he said no data was available until recently amid a global backsliding on reporting.
“We are really looking to our Chinese partners to regularly report on their vaccination coverage as they go through this difficult period,” she said.