FDA: Better to give elderly Sinovac now than wait for other anti-COVID-19 vaccines

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday said it approved the use of China’s Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine on the elderly because it was “more beneficial” to the vulnerable age group than having to wait for another brand to be available in the country.

FDA chief Eric Domingo admitted that while data on CoronaVac’s efficacy among the elderly is “very limited,” there are no concerns on its safety based on the monitoring of some 700 senior citizen health workers who got the Chinese-made vaccine.

“No’ng tiningnan natin, ‘yung adverse events sa kanila (When we checked, the adverse events among them) are within reasonable levels, acceptable levels,” he said in a Department of Health (DOH) briefing.

“Knowing also that wala naman tayong ibang vaccine right now na maaaring gamitin sa mga senior citizens… we found that it is more beneficial to vaccinate them now than to wait for ibang vaccine,” he added.

(Knowing also that we have no other vaccines right now that can be used on senior citizens… we  found that it is more beneficial to vaccinate them now than to wait for another vaccine.)

The FDA approved the use of CoronaVac on the elderly on Wednesday as the Philippines faced a shortage of AstraZeneca vaccines.

Previously, CoronaVac was only recommended for clinically healthy individuals aged 18 to 59.

In a separate statement, the Task Group on Vaccine Evaluation and Selection said the “FDA reiterates that their guidance may change and evolve as more efficacy, immunogenicity, and safety data become available.”

It also assured the public that CoronaVac will only be administered to a senior citizen after a “careful evaluation” of their health and exposure risk “to ensure that the benefits outweigh the risk,” with special attention to be given to those who are hypertensive.

The DOH implementing units will also “continuously” monitor vaccine recipients for any adverse effects, the group added.

The Philippines has so far received over 2 million Sinovac doses. Over 922,000 individuals have been vaccinated as of April 6. --NB, GMA News