Infectious Disease Expert Recommends To Still Use Sinovac And Sinopharm For Vaccination

Private Kowal Koarmada II pours the Sinovac vaccine into an injection during a COVID-19 vaccination social service for the maritime community at the Brondong Archipelago Fishery Port, Lamongan, Wednesday (14/7/2021). (ANTARA/Hanif Nasrullah)

JAKARTA – Vaccination is still considered the best way to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, there are many types of vaccines circulating in the world. For that Dr. Faheem Younus, continues to encourage the public to continue to be vaccinated.

The infectious disease expert from the University of Maryland, United States, also continues to encourage the public to use the Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines. Although the two vaccines from China are said to be not as effective as US-produced Pfizer vaccines.

"If only Sinovac and Sinopharm are available, keep the vaccine with them", said Faheem in an online discussion, Saturday, July 17.

Faheem analogies vaccines like seat belts. He said seat belts do not guarantee 100 percent of a person avoiding the danger of an accident, but can reduce the effects of the accident.

Because the efficacy levels of the two vaccines are in the 60 to 70 percent range, Faheem asked people who have been vaccinated to continue to comply with health protocols to reduce the risk of contracting COVID-19.

"If you have been vaccinated, you should not go to birthday parties, or large indoor weddings, or crowded places, just because you feel protected. You should know that the efficacy of the vaccine is not 100 percent", Faheem said.

Previously, the Chinese government ensured that it continued to attach great importance to the safety and effectiveness of vaccines manufactured by companies Sinovac and Sinopharm, following reports that questioned the effectiveness of the country's COVID-19 vaccine.

“The Chinese side has consistently placed great importance on the safety and effectiveness of vaccines. The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved the emergency use of the CoronaVac vaccine made by Sinovac, this fully proves the safety and effectiveness of CoronaVac", said Counselor for Science and Technology at the Chinese Embassy in Jakarta, Yi Fanping, at a press conference on Thursday, July 15.

He explained that until last June 28, the CoronaVac vaccine had received emergency use approval from 50 countries and regions in the world, while the global injection of the CoronaVac vaccine had reached 75 million doses.

"Research data to date have shown the high safety and efficacy of CoronaVac in preventing exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus and controlling the pandemic", said Fanping, highlighting that health institutions from a number of countries such as Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay have also evaluated the vaccine's efficacy in the practice field.