Sinovac delivers 1 million doses to Hong Kong

The Hong Kong government says the Sinovac vaccine has received unanimous approval from an expert panel of 12. The panel as well as the citys health officials reviewed Sinovacs early-stage trial data, as well as interim data from the last stage of clinical trials in Brazil.Sinovacs vaccine was approved for general use in China earlier in February.AP RUPRUP

China's Sinovac delivered 1 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine CoronaVac to Hong Kong on Friday evening.

Government officials approved Sinovac's two-dose vaccine on Thursday. The semi-autonomous city is relying on three vaccines and has purchased 22.5 million doses in total.

Priority groups include health care workers and those above the age of 60, as well as essential workers. Online appointments will begin on Tuesday. The city is also expecting 1 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine by the end of February. It has also purchased Astrazeneca's shots.

Sinovac has yet to publicly release clinical trial data from its last stage of testing, drawing criticism for lack of transparency. The Hong Kong government says the Sinovac vaccine has received unanimous approval from an expert panel of 12. The panel as well as the city's health officials reviewed Sinovac's early-stage trial data, as well as interim data from the last stage of clinical trials in Brazil.

Sinovac's vaccine was approved for general use in China earlier in February.(AP) RUPRUP