China begins mass flu vaccinations

CHINA: China started mass vaccinations for swine flu Monday in Beijing, making it apparently the first nation in the world to start innoculating its population against the virus.

The Asian giant has been at the forefront of international efforts to produce an A(H1N1) influenza vaccine, with at least five companies receiving government approval for the work. Officials however have warned demand will exceed supply.

The capital’s municipal health bureau announced Monday in a statement on its website that Beijing “took the lead in China in starting A(H1N1) flu vaccinations”.

Authorities started the program by immunising students due to take part in next week’s National Day celebrations, the statement said. Around 100,000 students are due to attend, according to recent state media reports.

“We believe that China is the first country in the world to start mass vaccinations for A(H1N1) flu,” Vivian Tan, spokeswoman for the World Health Organisation in China, told AFP.

The health ministry has said it plans to vaccinate 65 million people, or five percent of the country’s total population of 1.3 billion, before year’s end.

A total of 500 medical workers in nearly 50 teams have been mobilised to go to schools across Beijing to give the students their shots, which are free and voluntary, the health bureau reported.

Apart from students taking part in festivities marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of communist China on October 1.

 Beijing, Tuesday, AFP