People receive Covid-19 vaccines at a temporary vaccination center in Beijing on January 8
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China administered more than 9 million doses of coronavirus vaccine as the country prepares for a possible increase in winter infections.
About 7.5 million doses have been given since December 15, officials said at a briefing in Beijing. Vaccines are free for all citizens, and the costs will be covered by the medical fund and fiscal budgets, they said.
China sees a higher risk of the virus spreading in the winter as people travel and gather for the holidays, Zeng Yixin, deputy head of the National Health Commission, told reporters.
Vaccination launches first focus on high-risk population groups because production capacity cannot keep up, Zeng said. Capacity is steadily increasing now and will allow doses to be administered to the general public, he said, without providing a timeline.
China is “active, open and supportive” of a World Health Organization visit to Wuhan to investigate the origins of the virus, Zeng said. China has aligned its own experts to work with WHO experts in Wuhan. The timing of the WHO team’s arrival in China is still confirmed, he said.
– With the assistance of John Liu and Dingmin Zhang
(Adds comments on vaccine costs, WHO in the second, last paragraph)