Hong Kong, Macau suspend use of BioNTech vaccine

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) – Hong Kong and Macau, two semi-autonomous regions of China, on Wednesday decided to suspend use of the BioNTech vaccine.

The decision came after “deviations in the vial seal were found in one batch of the vaccine”, a statement by local Hong Kong government said.

Early this morning, Fosun Industrial, a local firm which develops the German vaccine, issued a notification about the deviations.

Hong Kong government's data shows at least 403,000 people have been administered vaccines, so far.

Hong Kong approved the BionNTech vaccine in January, and later also approved China's Sinovac for emergency use.

“The Government noted that while BioNTech and Fosun Pharma have no reason to believe there is a risk to product safety, for the sake of prudence, vaccination of the batch concerned should be suspended pending an investigation,” the statement added.

A similar statement was issued by the local government in Macau.

The government put batch 210104 of the BioNTech on hold and “as a precautionary measure to ensure vaccine safety.”

Those with appointments to receive the vaccine doses have been asked to not go to the community vaccination centers for vaccination.

Hong Kong has reported 11,410 coronavirus cases including 204 deaths since the outbreak, while Macau has just reported 48 cases with no deaths.