China.org.cn | January 4, 2021
Lianhe Zaobao:
As has been mentioned, the assessment of a vaccine involves its safety, effectiveness, accessibility and affordability. So, what will be relevant price range?
Zheng Zhongwei:
The price will be generally decided by the manufacturer. It will follow two main principles: first, the nature of a public good, second, as a public good, its price should be based on cost. It is widely known that the cost of a product may vary based on the scale of manufacturing and its usage. We are ready for a large-scale production and the inoculation plan for our homegrown vaccine which has been approved for public use. Just as director Zeng has mentioned, we will launch the inoculation plan with a three-step approach: firstly, open to "key groups" or "high-risk groups" and then inoculation of vulnerable groups before vaccinating the general population. As the work proceeds smoothly, the cost will be greatly reduced. We believe that the price will be affordable and acceptable to the people.
Zeng Yixin:
The vaccine is a public good in its nature and the price may vary due to its scale of use. But an important premise is that it will be provided free of charge to all Chinese people. Thank you!
Hong Kong Economic Herald:
How many orders has China's vaccine received from overseas? What are the preferred exporting plans in the future? Thank you!
Shen Bo:
Thank you for your question. China remains open to international cooperation and actively supports Chinese enterprises' research and production cooperation with global counterparts to benefit the whole world. Many Chinese vaccine candidates are undergoing phase Ⅲ trials smoothly in countries such as UAE, Bahrain, Argentina, Peru, Brazil, and Indonesia. Among them, UAE and Bahrain have recently approved registration and usage of the inactivated vaccine manufactured by Sinopharm.
After China's vaccine moves to public usage, it will be provided globally at a fair, reasonable price. We will still attach importance to its accessibility and affordability in developing countries and will positively offer them in many ways. Donation and non-reimbursable assistance will also be considered in terms of different situations in developing countries. We also call on the international community to work together to promote fair distribution of the vaccine, and strive to make the vaccine a public good that is accessible and affordable to people worldwide. Thank you!
Hu Kaihong:
That's all for today's press conference. Thank you all.
Translated and edited by Zhu Bochen, Wang Wei, Guo Yiming, Wang Qian, Zhang Jiaqi, Li Huiru, Xu Xiaoxuan, Huang Shan, Wang Yiming, Wang Yanfang, Gong Yingchun, Zhou Jing, Duan Yaying, Yuan Fang, Zhang Tingting, Fan Junmei, Geoffrey Murray, and Tom Arnstein. In case of any discrepancy between the English and Chinese texts, the Chinese version is deemed to prevail.