Sinovac cold shoulder a growing concern

After France and Germany, Singapore joined an expanding bandwagon to exclude the mainland-made Sinovac vaccine and subject people inoculated with it to regular quarantine measures that are currently in place.

This can be a concern for Hong Kong.

A third of the people here are vaccinated, representing major progress from the early hesitancy.

As Health Secretary Sophia Chan Siu-chee predicted the number will reach half the population by September, many of them would have been administered with Sinovac, one of the two vaccines available here.

In view of the Singapore government's decision to omit Sinovac from its national vaccination program, it is more likely than not that the travel bubble that the SAR has been trying to establish with the Lion City will have to burst.

Commerce and Economic Development Secretary Edward Yau Tang-wah should not give the bubble too high an expectation. It's a question that must be faced not only by Yau, but also other officials.

As the world goes down the road of easing international travel restrictions, it can be imagined that countries will formulate their own policies to treat vaccinated and unvaccinated travelers differently - be that via vaccine passports or something known by a less socio-politically divisive term.

Britain has adopted a so-called traffic light system with a view to aligning it to proof of vaccination.

The European Union is moving even more quickly, although it is still working hard to catch up in vaccinating its people. It has included a few vaccines for quarantine-free travel, but Sinovac is not among them.

Singapore's decision has caught even some nationals by surprise because, as soon as the World Health Organization approved the Sinovac vaccine for emergency use, the Singapore government designated private clinics to draw on its stock of 200,000 Sinovac doses - which are called CoronaVac in the Lion City.

So far, over 17,000 people in Singapore have received the Sinovac jabs.

The policy update means these Singaporeans will still need to test negative before attending certain events or venues, while the 3.7 million who have had Pfizer or Moderna shots need not.

This is an emerging international trend of concern to international cities, including Hong Kong.

In the post-pandemic era, it will be essential for individuals to be able to travel without additional curbs.

Although the WHO considers Sinovac safe, it will be pragmatic for the SAR government to think ahead to minimize the likely impact due to varied acceptance of the vaccine by other governments

The government's plan to stop rolling out BioNTech at vaccination centers in September is a genuine cause for concern as it will have major implications overall.

It would be pragmatic for vaccine chief Patrick Nip Tak-kuen to: first, secure continued supply of BioNTech from the greater China region's sole distributor, Fosun Pharma; and second, continue to make BioNTech available after September.

Better still, Nip should keep an eye on other vaccines under development as the Covid virus mutates constantly, and be prepared to secure their supply once the need arises.